


Baby Daddy

by go_ne



Category: Teen Titans (Animated Series), Teen Titans (Comics), Teen Titans - All Media Types
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-07-27
Updated: 2018-07-27
Packaged: 2019-06-17 01:19:02
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 42,280
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15450195
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/go_ne/pseuds/go_ne
Summary: It was a one night stand gone completely wrong. Richard didn't mean to get her pregnant. Honest, he didn't.





	1. Chapter 1

****_Baby Daddy_ : Introduction

**_._ **

It was a one night stand gone completely wrong.

Richard didn't mean to get her pregnant.

Honest, he didn't.

Normally, he would never let anyone or anything take the fall for whatever he had done. He was always quick to take the blame or responsibility for anything he did whether it was good, bad, or repercussions would be incurred. This was just how he was raised, but _hell_. He was blaming this _entire_ pregnancy on the lack of a proper summer vacation.

To his family, 'summer' was always translated to 'traveling'. Of course, being the adopted son of the one and only Bruce Wayne, such hefty traveling fees were always taken care of no matter how plenty and expensive they were. He had seen the Niagara Falls, climbed the Northern Alps, received a personal tour of the Taj Mahal, seen the Great Pyramids up close, and played soccer with children in the streets of Brazil. He had even gone to the Disneyland in Paris, France. By the time Richard was sixteen years old, he had already seen more of the world than most people could ever even dream of seeing. This summer, however, the one leading up to his final year at the university, he decided to stay home.

The house was empty this summer. Honestly speaking, the great house was always empty during the summer. This was just the first summer that he actually witnessed it for himself. Although Richard wanted to stay home for the summer, he didn't actually want to sit around the house all day. So one morning, he took the train to Jump City. He had already explored most of the world, so he may as well do the same with the area surrounding him.

This summer wasn't the first that he heard of Jump, but it certainly was the first that he had ever stepped foot in it. The whole vibe of that city was so different when compared to Gotham. Gotham had always had such a dark and gloomy air about it, but Jump seemed to be lighter and exuded brightness even during the warm or cool summer nights. He liked it, and soon enough, he would be spending his entire days, from morning to night, in the city. It took about a week and some days before he found some places that he liked to frequent.

One night, he discovered a café.

Richard wasn't even sure how he managed to find it. It may or may not have just been him following the scent that his nose picked up, but he wasn't complaining. The café was relatively small, as all cafés somehow had a tendency to be. It smelled absolutely delicious, and although it was always warm, the air was never humid, sticky, or uncomfortable. It was quite cozy, the workers were kind, and it felt pretty homey.

But it was the barista that caught his eye.

The barista looked more like a "Gotham" girl than a "Jump" girl at first glance. She was small and petite, and her skin was incredibly pale. Had it been the winter, he would have understood, but it was the summer and the sun was blazing almost every day. Did she just never stand out in the sun? To top it all off (literally), her hair was a dark and dusky color. It wasn't necessarily _black_ , but he couldn't quite put his finger on the color. Admittedly, she was quite strange looking and she barely even smiled. Whenever she did smile, and he would be watching her, it would always be more of a short smirk.

Every night, she would man the front, and he would always watch her from the little table in the corner that he had claimed since finding the café. Every now and then, she would tense, her brows would knit, and she would look up to catch whoever was watching her. Richard would immediately look down and flip through the pages of his book that sat on the table before him. After a moment, he would take a peek and find her back to work. A smile would slide onto his face then as one, single thought ran through his mind:

He wanted her.

It was a pretty stupid thought when he considered the fact that he had never spoken one word to her before. He had never even approached the front before and the mere thought made him nervous. The reality of becoming nervous by just _thinking_ about approaching the _counter_ and not even _her_ made him even more nervous, and it was absolutely ridiculous. Girls _never_ made _Richard_ nervous - _Richard_ made _girls_ nervous. It was _always_ the other way around. But every night, he would take the train back home smelling like cappuccinos, lattes, and deeply ground coffee beans while thinking about her.

It was the classic tale of the lowly customer fawning over the barista of his dreams.

One night, the café was quiet. Hushed conversations and murmurs bounced and reverberated off of the walls. Every now and then, a sudden laugh or exclamation was heard as a love song being strummed to a delicate guitar flowed through the speakers. It was empty save for the few dedicated and regular patrons that Richard had already become accustomed to seeing. He took the lack of people (and the lack of an audience) as a chance to finally approach the front.

Along with this being the first time that he had approached the front, this was also the first time that he had seen the barista up close. Her skin was still pale, but it looked like her entire body was formed and created with pure moon dust. True to his suspicion, her hair wasn't black. It wasn't even a slight variation or a dusky version of black. Her hair was a deep plum color that was pulled back into a messy bun at the nape of her neck and her eyes were the most unusual shade of purple that he had ever seen. He was skeptical of her hair color, but he was a little less skeptical of her eyes being a result of contact lenses. She was still strange looking, but it was an exotic sort of strange. In short, she was beautiful.

"Hello, may I take your order?"

Richard blinked. Her voice was deep and husky; a sound that he was not expecting to come out of her mouth, but he decided that any other tone would have sounded wrong. And it caught him completely off guard. So off guard that he actually blurted out an ever eloquent: "Huh?"

She arched a brow. "Are you always this articulate?"

"Hey," one of her coworkers admonished playfully with a waggling finger as they made their way through the back door. "Be nice now."

As the coworker slipped away, the barista rolled her eyes and her sarcasm finally sunk in. Inwardly, Richard began berating himself for allowing the first word that he ever said to her be ' _huh_ '. Nevertheless, he sat on a stool with a chuckle - a nervous one. "Sorry. I was just a bit distracted by your eyes."

She didn't look sorry for her previous sarcasm or flattered by his little line. She didn't begin to stutter, giggle, or even blush. Instead, she crossed her arms with a dismissive snort. "Please tell me that you weren't just trying to flirt with me."

"That depends. How am I doing?"

"Dreadfully poor."

Dreadfully poor? Only a Gotham girl would say something like that. Because of this, he laughed and held his hands up in surrender. "Fine, fine. I'm done."

A corner of her mouth turned up. "You never started." Before he could interject, she continued with a, "May I take your order _now_?"

He looked to the chalkboard above her head. All of the names of the foods and drinks were there along with the prices, but he had never actually ordered anything before this. He always just came to read a book and to catch a glimpse of her.

He met her eyes and his stomach turned. How eyes could hold and possess so much depth, Richard would never understand. "What do you suggest?"

"The chocolate oolong berry tea."

"You answered that pretty quickly. Is that your favorite?"

"Yes."

"I'll take it." When she rolled her eyes again and turned to make the drink, he allowed a smile to grow onto his face.

"You're not from around here," she commented as she worked. "A few of my coworkers noticed you last week. They think that you're gorgeous."

"And you?"

"I've seen better."

He whistled lowly. "Ouch." He snickered because he didn't miss the slight raising of her cheekbones. "You're right. I'm not from around here. I'm from Gotham."

" _Gotham_?" She sounded surprised. "What's a Gotham kid doing so far from home?"

"I got curious."

"Hm. I bet." She returned with a large, steaming mug and placed it in front of him. At that, she cocked her head to the side in the most kiddish way and a few wisps of hair escaped the bun to grace her jawline. She looked absolutely adorable. "Taste it."

Suddenly, the perfect blend of chocolate and berries permeated the air around him. He raised the mug to his lips and took a careful sip. He was pleasantly surprised as he set the mug down. "It's delicious. You have good taste."

She seemed to be fighting a smile. "What made you so curious about Jump?"

Her. But he couldn't tell her that. Not yet, anyway. "This is the first summer that I've actually stayed at home and not gone vacationing. I thought that I'd do some exploring."

"And you found your way to our little café," she said with a nod. "Did daddy run out of traveling money or something?"

Okay, this girl _had_ to be from Gotham. "Where are you from?" He didn't mean to ignore her question. He just had to know.

"Jump."

"Born and raised?"

She nodded, but looked suspicious. "Why?"

Richard shook his head. "You just seem like a Gotham girl."

She snorted loudly. "A _Gotham girl_? Do you always compare the new women you meet to the ones that you're familiar with?"

This was ridiculous. She had to have at least _one_ parent or even a grandparent that hailed from Gotham. "No one in your family is from Gotham?"

Her jaw ticked. Then she rolled her eyes to the ceiling with a sigh. "My mother is from Gotham."

Ha! His lips turned up and into a smile. He could spot a Gotham girl from a mile away whether they were full blooded or not. She met his eyes and he raised the mug to his lips to take another sip. "What's your name?"

"Guess," she deadpanned. "You seem to be a little detective boy."

He chuckled as he looked her over and set his mug down. She really was beautiful. "Priscilla."

She cringed. "Ew. Is that the best you can come up with, detective boy?"

Richard shrugged the nickname off. "I just said the first pretty name that came to mind."

The barista crossed her arms and watched him suspiciously. Before she could answer, the same coworker from earlier barged in through the back door. "Raven, a couple of us are-" He stopped short with a growing grin. "Are you too busy flirting to listen to me?"

The barista, or Raven, never took her eyes off of Richard. "I'm not the one flirting here."

Richard arched a brow.

Raven's eyes narrowed - _ever_ so slightly. "Did you need something, Garfield?"

Garfield shook his head with a full blown grin. He held his hands up and began backing up and through the back door. "Nope. Not anymore. I'll just ask Terra. Continue."

Once Garfield was out of the scene, Richard spoke. "How am I doing now?"

"Surprisingly enough, better than before."

Good. He smiled and she pursed her lips in an attempt to fight off her own. "Raven? Nice name."

"Is that pretty enough for you?"

She asked, but Richard knew that she couldn't care less what he thought. So, he told her the truth. "It's perfect."

This time, she allowed both corners of her mouth to curve up. It was a very small curving, and he wouldn't have even noticed it had he not been watching her so closely, but he saw it. Although it definitely couldn't constitute as a smile, it made his stomach turn. "Thanks. You know my name. What's yours?"

"Richard."

"Like the three kings," she commented a bit offhandedly. "Nice."

"Thanks." She nodded in a sort of 'you're welcome' type of way and he continued. "I wasn't lying when I said that I was distracted by your eyes earlier. Are those natural?"

Immediately, she looked insulted. "Do they look fake to you?"

He held his hands up in defense for the second time that night. "This is just the first time that I've seen purple eyes."

"Violet," she corrected. "And they're a birth defect. A 'genetic mutation', if you will. At least, that's what the doctors call it."

Richard nodded. He knew that eyes like that could never be unnatural no matter how strange or uncommon the color was. They were much too deep and expressive to be contact lenses. "What about your hair? Is that a genetic mutation, too?"

It was then that the corners of her lips fully turned up. Not in a smile, but in that little smirk that he had seen her giving her customers from his little corner. "Wouldn't you like to know, detective boy?"

Up close, that little smirk made her look a bit devilish. To be quite honest, it made him wonder just how wild she was in bed.

How wild she _could_ be.

How wild he could _get_ her to be.

"I would."

Richard didn't take her home that night. _She_ took _him_ home - just like a true Gotham girl would. They crept through the front door of her apartment, and once she made sure that her parents weren't home, all bets were off. He kissed her all over and she tasted just like that chocolate oolong berry tea that she made for him. He ran his hands all over her soft moon dusted skin, got his fingers caught in her deep plum colored hair, inhaled her deeply ground coffee bean scent, and had those violet eyes clamping shut constantly and consistently. Discovering for himself just how wild she could be once she got from behind that counter at the café was definitely an ego boost. Despite how reserved she was there, in bed she liked to bite, scratch and claw, tug at his hair, and even growl. Most importantly of all, after careful and patient deliberation, Richard discovered that her hair color was utterly, completely, and without a doubt _absolutely_ _natural_.

To sum it all up, it was _awesome_.

This wasn't Richard's first one night stand. It wasn't her first, either. There was nothing romantic or cute about it. It was pure and unadulterated sex paired up with witty banter the next morning.

Richard was fine with it.

Raven was fine with it.

But the universe was not.

All was well for about a week. He continued to frequent the café and she continued to work there, not that she would stop for him. They never touched each other or spoke to each other again, but there were always secret glances and looks from across the room until it came time for him to leave.

Suddenly, she disappeared.

As stated before, this was a one night stand that had gone completely wrong. No matter how _awesome_ it was, it had gone wrong, _all wrong_ , and he should have known when she missed a day of work. And the day after that. And the next day. And the _next_ day. And the _next_ _day_. He had just discovered the café, but he just _knew_ that she would never miss a day of work. She didn't call him ' _detective boy_ ' for nothing.

Richard shouldn't have been stressing so much over her. It wasn't like they were in a relationship. They had sex once and never spoke to each other after that, but he couldn't stop worrying about her. This gave him his first clue to the dire mistake that he had made. The mistake being his woman of choice.

Richard was from Gotham City - born and raised. So, of course he would have a penchant for Gotham girls. He grew up with Gotham girls and constantly interacted with them on a daily basis. If he was to ever speak on his 'type', the first word out of his mouth would be " _Gotham_ ". Out of all the women that he had met outside of Gotham, none had ever reminded him of his city more than Raven. That in itself was a problem.

Rule number one to choosing a one night stand? Do _not_ choose someone that you _know_ you will not be able to cut off easily.

Richard broke that rule as soon as he set his sights on her. He would never be able to cut Gotham off, so he _definitely_ wouldn't be able to cut Raven off. She was the witty barista from Gotham who wasn't even _really_ from Gotham. He should have never pursued her. In fact, he shouldn't have even _looked_ at her in the first place because now that she was gone, he couldn't keep an eye out for her. He couldn't stop thinking of her.

Pa. The. Tic. To the _highest_ degree. _Possible_.

Nevertheless, Richard continued to come to the café. He continued to sit at his little corner hoping that he would see her working at the front, taking people's orders, and making drinks. But she never showed up. After about three nights of waiting out, he almost decided that he was done waiting out for a girl who wasn't even his.

It was on the third night that he found her. He was stepping out and he caught her leaving through the back. "Raven?"

She jumped and turned around to face him.

'Caught' really was the appropriate term because she didn't look too happy to hear him say her name. Actually, she looked ready to bolt and it was ridiculous how much he cared. It was a freaking. One. Night. Stand. Yet, he was still approaching her steadily as to not scare her away. He looked to the café, then to her. "You still work here?"

Raven looked at him like he was stupid. "I need money."

He almost exhaled a breath of relief right then and there. At least she wasn't changing up on him. "I was only asking because you kind of disappeared."

"I just stopped working the front. I work at the back now-" Quickly, she bit on her lip. She obviously had not mean to tell him that last part.

"Why are you working at the back?" he asked. Still, she remained quiet, chewing on her lip in defiance. It was _ridiculous_ how much she reminded him of his city. "Have you been trying to avoid me?"

At that, she scoffed. Her bottom lip was red and swollen as she rolled her eyes up to the sky. "Oh, please. Why would _I_ be avoiding _you_ , Boy Blunder?"

His brows jumped at the new name, but he was glad that she was speaking. "What is it, then? Is something wrong?"

Raven scoffed once again. Although, a very tiny smile did seem to be playing at her lips. She crossed her arms and the light breeze made the little baby hairs that couldn't fit into her bun dance about her face. "The number one and cardinal rule of a one night stand is to not worry about what the other person is doing after the sex. 'Do you and I'll do me'. Have you ever heard that phrase?"

Richard knew the phrase. He lived by it. Well, he _usually_ lived by it. "Watching out for Gotham girls is in my blood."

"I'm not from Gotham."

"You sure do act like you are."

"I'm pregnant."

Record scratch.

" _Huh_ -?! _What_ -?!"

She snorted with an arched brow. "I suppose you really are always this articulate." At that, she turned and walked away.

Richard could only watch her walk away. Pregnant? She couldn't be _pregnant_ and bringing a _kid_ into this world. _His_ kid. He wasn't ready to be a _father_. He was ready to take on his final year at the university and graduate. Didn't they use some sort of protection?

Suddenly, a feeling dread overtook him.

No. They didn't use protection.

So excited was Richard that he had actually found a Gotham girl outside of Gotham that he took her raw. No wonder it was so awesome. Now, she was _pregnant_ with _his kid -_ and currently walking away. But he couldn't just let her leave. Leaving or letting her walk away knowing that she was pregnant was not something that he would be able to do. Gotham girl or not.

Richard ran a hand down his face with a heavy sigh and rushed after her. "Hey, wait."

Raven glanced at him from the corner of her eye and stopped walking to regard him. "You're still here. What is it?"

He almost sputtered. "What do you mean ' _what is it_ '? What are we going to do?"

" _We_?"

"Yes. _We_."

She blinked and raised a foot to take a step back. Then she dropped her foot and took a moment to watch him suspiciously. "I didn't think that you would actually want to stick around."

"Why wouldn't I stick around? You're having my kid."

"Are you only sticking around because I'm a Gotham girl?"

"You're not from Gotham, remember?"

A chuckle escaped her.

The first time that he had heard her deep and husky chuckle was when they were a sweaty mess of limbs, and it had been interrupted by her gasp and followed by an enticingly low and hitching moan. This one, the one that slipped from her lips at this moment made his stomach turn ten times more, and it wasn't right. She was pregnant with his child, but she wasn't his. He knew it and so did she, but he couldn't help the smile that slid onto his face at the sound of that chuckle. "What were you going to do?"

"Get a second job," she answered. "I'll need one soon because my parents are going to kick me out of the house once they find out."

"How are you so sure?"

"I know them," she said with a shrug and looked off. "They wouldn't want an unwed and pregnant daughter living under their roof. College graduate or not."

Did she just say 'college graduate'? "You're done with school?"

"I started early and took summer classes. I finished in two and a half years."

At least the kid would be a genius.

"I'm supposed to be the smart one in the family," she continued quietly. "This is a pretty big setback."

Richard didn't like to see her so upset. "It's not a setback. It's a child. That doesn't make you stupid."

"Tell that to my parents."

"I guess I will."

She met his eyes.

Richard nodded determinedly. "I'll be there when you tell them."

Raven scoffed. "Because I'm a Gotham girl?"

"You're not from Gotham." And for the first time, he found a smile on her face.

When they arrived at her apartment, Richard was right at her side. He could just chalk it up to her being pregnant with his child, and he didn't want to acknowledge it, but he knew that this wasn't the only reason that he already felt so protective over her. As she prepared to tell her parents, her hands shook. He didn't reach out to hold them, but he did reassure her of his presence.

Once she finally stuttered out the words "I'm pregnant", her father uttered two words of his own: "Get out."

Although she expected it, Richard could tell that actually hearing the words with her own two ears shocked her to the core. Now, they were sitting on the front steps of her apartment building.

"I told you," she spoke into her hands, her voice a bit muffled. "I should have just gotten my stuff, crashed at Terra's place until I got the second job, and then told them."

In her father's anger, he didn't even allow her to gather her things. It was only due to the presence of her mother that Richard had gotten out of there safely. He did _not_ know what to do. "I'm sorry," he told her after a moment.

"It's not your fault, Boy Blunder."

"Boy Blunder?"

"You _blundered_ and got me pregnant."

"You _just_ said that this wasn't my fault."

"I was talking about my parents."

He couldn't help the laugh the escaped him at that. She burrowed her face deeper into her hands and he knew that it was because she was smiling. Before he could stop himself, he said the words that would get him in trouble and keep him in said trouble throughout the rest of this pregnancy: "Why don't you move in with me?"

She removed her hands from over her face to look at him. "Excuse me?"

Quite frankly, he was just as surprised as she looked. Nevertheless, he powered through. "You're pregnant with my child and you need a place to live. I'd be happy to help you out with that."

"Because I'm a Gotham girl?"

"You're not from Gotham."

Her nose crinkled up adorably. "Because I'm the Gotham girl who's pregnant with your baby, then. What happens after this baby comes? We go our separate ways?"

"We're having a kid together. We'll be stuck together for a while."

"Eighteen years."

"Maybe longer."

A moment of silence passed between them and Richard could hear the sounds of the summer night. Crickets were chirping, bugs were buzzing, and there was a light breeze. All he could think of was how differently things would have gone if he had a proper summer vacation. If he had just gone out of the country like he normally did, none of this would have happened. Richard would not have been in this situation had he just gone traveling. Yet, he couldn't help but to think of how perfectly her violet eyes and moon dusted skin fit the scenery of this summer night.

Raven shook her head and looked to the sky. She released a heavy breath. "I guess I'm going to Gotham."

 


	2. Chapter 2

_Baby Daddy_ : Chapter One

**_._ **

Despite having such a slick mouth, Raven was actually quite the tight-lipped driving companion. In fact, as soon as they hit Gotham City, she grew completely silent. There were no more silly banters or witty responses to anything that Richard had to say. Instead, it was the droning of the radio and the engine's humming that filled the silence of the car ride. Although he would have preferred to hear that unbelievably deep and husky voice of hers, Richard understood her silence and left her to observe her new surroundings. It was, after all, the first time that she had been so deep in Gotham.

"Remind me," she spoke rather abruptly. "What did you say that you did for a living, again?"

Along with this being her first time so deep in Gotham, this was also Raven's first time at the Wayne estate. Not that she knew it.

A smile creeped its way onto his face and he looked to her. The smell of coffee beans seemed to hit him even harder now that he was looking at her. The breeze flowing through the car windows made the hairs that didn't make it into her bun dance and float about. Her pale fingers constantly worked to comb the rebellious tendrils down and away from her face, but to no avail. Even in the dead of the night, those violet eyes seemed to be glowing, and her brows knitted and unknitted as she surveyed the area around her.

Suddenly, Richard was very glad that he had passed up on the train ride to the café that night and opted to drive instead. It wasn't because of the free show that he was getting (not that he wasn't enjoying _that -_ which he was _totally_ doing), but because he needed at least _some_ semblance of control over his life after finding out that he was about to become a _father_.

Slowly, the wide metal gates of the estate spread themselves open for the car with a creaking that dragged and pierced into the silence of the night. To say that Raven looked suspicious was an understatement. A big one.

Nevertheless, Richard looked to the winding road ahead of them. "I can't remind you of something that I never told you." At that, he drove past the gates.

Immediately, Raven turned to watch the gates. Just as slowly as they did while opening, the gates closed with the same dragging creak. "Tell me now," she demanded once they shut with a surprisingly quiet slam. She turned to look to him expectantly, and he caught another whiff of coffee beans and the slightest hint of tea. It was a soothing scent, not too strong nor too soft. "And don't tell me that you're a barista."

Deep underneath that moon dusted skin of hers, Gotham was definitely running through her veins. Richard couldn't help but to wonder how much time she spent with her own Gotham-bred mother as a child. He looked to her, met with her wondering and violet eyes, and his stomach turned.

Richard wanted the barista.

And he got her.

_Pregnant_.

Very briefly, he wondered if the child would end up with her eyes - 'genetic mutation' or not. Then, with a heavy sigh, he returned his attention back to the winding road. "Welcome to the manor."

"The _manor_?" she spat out. "What kind of bull shit is _that_?"

She sounded absolutely revolted. Perhaps it was because of how husky her voice was or because he was probably just sick in the head, but for some reason this revulsion was kind of sexy. "Okay, were you at least born in a _hospital_ in Gotham?"

"You better answer my question right now before I kick my foot so far up your pretty ass, you'll be tasting- Who's that?"

Richard was a bit disappointed. He was actually looking forward to hearing the rest of her threat. By now, he was positive that he really was just sick in the head. Instead of asking her to finish the threat, he slowed the car down and followed her line of vision. Standing at the front door of the manor was Alfred himself.

The car stopped.

Richard couldn't even remember the last time that Alfred waited up for him. It was probably during high school or when he had first entered college and gotten into partying. Of course, that was done with, especially now that he was to become a father. Usually, Bruce would always be at the old man's side, and Richard's phone would always be filled with a plethora of missed phone calls and ignored texts messages. This time, there were no phone calls or text messages, which meant that Bruce was still on vacation. This also meant that there was no lecture in store for Richard. His father was a bit hard, but who would give lectures at four in the morning?

Incredulously, Richard looked back to the clock. _Four_ in the _morning_?!

Richard parked the car right there. He could put it into the garage later on. After making that mental note, he took the key out of the ignition. He stepped out, shut the door behind him, and made his way over to Raven's side to open the door.

Steadily, she stepped out of the car and allowed him to shut the door behind her. The look on her face was well past 'suspicion', and rightfully so. If Richard had just found out that he was pregnant and decided to live with the father of the child only to find out that the father lived at a huge estate with a butler who looked like _Alfred_ , he would be just as afraid. Probably even more because she seemed pretty tough.

Richard didn't want to see that look on her face. So, he smiled and held an arm out for her to take. "Come on," he said and she looked to him with a slight jump. "He doesn't bite."

Raven watched him for a bit, looked to Alfred, then back to Richard before rolling her eyes up to the night sky with a hissed swear. She released a heavy sigh and hooked her arm around his, allowing him to lead her up the stairs and to Alfred.

Richard didn't doubt that the butler had been waiting there all night. It wouldn't be the first time, but that didn't take away from how bad he felt about it. "Sorry for keeping you up."

The butler nodded. "I never minded when you were younger and I don't mind now. However, you should have at least sent me a text message just as you did the other night, Master Grayson."

Raven scoffed and looked to Richard. " _Master_ Grayson?"

Finally, Alfred regarded her with a nod. "Yes."

She looked to him.

"He is Master Grayson and you are Miss..."

"Raven."

Alfred nodded again. "He is Master Grayson, you are Miss Raven, and I am Alfred."

" _Alfred_?"

"Yes, I am Alfred," he repeated with a nod. "Welcome to the Wayne Manor."

"The _Wayne_ _Manor_?"

"Yes," Alfred confirmed with another nod. "The Wayne Manor, as in, the manor or home, if you will, of Bruce Wayne."

At that moment, Richard could swear on every single thing he owned that he heard her breath hitching right at her throat. He didn't know much about pregnancy or babies, but he was pretty sure that not being able to breathe wouldn't be good for her or the baby. Actually, he was quite sure that not being able to breathe wasn't good for anyone, pregnant or not.

Before he could tell her to start breathing, she released a stuttering breath. "Bruce- _Bruce Wayne_? And you're his- his butler? Al- _Alfred_?"

"Yes. You are absolutely correct, Miss Raven."

Raven looked to Richard, her brows rising with each passing second. "And- and you're Bruce- Bruce Wayne's k- _kid_."

Richard was quite impressed with her stuttering. He wouldn't have been able to guess that she could stutter like that. The last time that he had heard her stutter so profusely was when they were in bed together and even that couldn't compare to this moment. Because of this, there was a grin growing onto his face. It was amusing to see someone so eloquent and so well spoken be driven to stutters at the mere mentioning of a name, and his _father's_ name, at that. It was adorable, a term that he didn't usually use to describe Gotham girls.

' _She's not from Gotham_ ,' a voice reminded him. It sounded _a lot_ like hers.

"Come on, Raven," Richard said as her stutters continued. "We both know that you're much more articulate than this."

Rather than responding with that signature wit of hers, Raven's stuttering actually came to a halt. A weak sigh escaped her, her eyes rolled to the back of her head, and her knees buckled underneath her as she fainted.

Richard caught her with ease and cradled her in his arms. His grin continued to grow as he watched her. Not only had he gotten her to stutter, but he also got her to faint. Both in one sitting. Or standing, however one looked at it. That was a feat in itself.

"Will our guest be all right?"

Translation: _What the_ hell _is going on here?_

Richard ignored the fact that she may or may not have been glowing in his arms to look up and meet Alfred's eyes. It was silent as they stood at the front door of the manor. The two men watched each other with a fainted Raven in Richard's arms and between them. He was sure that they made quite the scene. Had this entire estate not been gated, he was even more sure that they would have received a few questions from some inquiring and nosy neighbors the next morning.

"She's pregnant."

"Oh, _dear_." It wasn't often that the old man ever blurted anything out. He was _Alfred_. Everything about him was practiced and put together, but this was certainly news that would undo anyone. "Master Grayson, I'm sure that with such _expensive_ schooling you _must_ have received the proper sexual education concerning contraceptives."

Richard shirked back with a cringe and held Raven a bit closer. There that lecturing went. And it was about sex. Coming from _Alfred_. "Alfred, I'm going to stop you right there-"

Raven's quiet groan interrupted him.

Both men looked to her, watching her before Richard shook his head with a sigh. "I'm in a mess. She found out that she was pregnant, and her father kicked her out of the house. She was going to take care of it all by herself, but I couldn't let her, so I invited her to live here. I couldn't let her do this alone, Al."

"Am I to assume that you'll be taking care of her?"

"I'm not so sure that she would ever allow anyone but herself to do that."

Another silent moment passed and Richard could hear a car alarm go off in the distance.

Alfred clicked his tongue. "I'll prepare a room for Miss Raven." At that, he spun on his heel and made his way into the manor.

Richard tore his eyes away from Raven and looked up, only to be met with Alfred's retreating figure. "Thank you, Alfred," he said as he followed after him.

"This shall be rather interesting once your father finds out. Don't you think?"

"May you _please_ just go and fix her room up?"

Alfred guffawed.

Raven groaned.

Richard kicked the door shut behind him.

He didn't sleep well that night. At all. He didn't know _why_ , but he just didn't feel _right_. It wasn't because the mother of his child was sleeping in the bedroom right next door or because it was so hot. It wasn't until his clock hit five o'clock that he was finally able to fall asleep, but not before his stomach dropped and his heartbeat suspiciously picked its pace up. When he woke up later on and made his way to the kitchen for breakfast, he soon discovered why his body was acting so strangely.

Bruce was back from vacation.

_-insert preferred brands of gasps and/or screams of terror here-_

No wonder Richard woke up with the same queasy feeling that he fell asleep with.

His father's first words to him were not ' _hello_ ', ' _how was your first summer at home?_ ', and did not even begin with ' _my summer was_...' Instead, the first thing that he said to Richard was, "Where is she?"

AKA: Typical Bruce.

Of course, the first and only coherent thought running through Richard's mind after having just woken up and receiving such a question was: "It's way too early for this shit." Unfortunately, he actually said this aloud.

However, luckily for him and before Bruce could grab for his neck, Alfred was there. "I'll introduce you to her, Master Wayne."

The walk to Raven's room was long and awkward to say the least. It wasn't as if he was walking to his wife's room or even to his girlfriend's. He was being escorted by his butler to the bedroom of the girl that he'd impregnated in order to introduce her to his father.

Ugh.

When they finally arrived to the room, Alfred knocked twice. "Miss Raven."

It was silent before a bit of shuffling was heard and followed by a, "Yes?"

Bruce's jaw ticked, but he didn't look at Richard. In fact, he had not looked at Richard once throughout this entire journey (and it was a _journey_ ) to her bedroom.

_Ugh_.

"May we have a word with you?"

A bit more shuffling was heard before the door opened and Raven was revealed. She didn't look as sleep deprived as he felt. In fact, she looked pretty well rested and her hair was still in that messy bun at the nape of her neck. Those violet eyes looked to Alfred, Richard, then widened as she craned her neck upward to finally and fully take Bruce's gargantuan figure in.

Alfred cleared his throat. "Master Wayne, I have the pleasure of introducing you to Miss Raven. Miss Raven, this is Master _Bruce_ _Wayne_."

It was silent. An awkward silence. More awkward than the walk to her room and Richard was _positive_ that he was _still_ the only one who felt it.

"Oh," Alfred spoke. "Don't worry, sir. She fainted last night."

Bruce looked immensely satisfied.

Raven looked immensely insulted. She crossed her arms with a glare directed to Bruce. "You were waiting for me to _faint_?"

"Last name." The older man had his hands clasped at his back and his chin jutted out. All he had to do was puff his chest and he would make a pretty convincing drill sergeant. Thus, the true reason why Richard could never bring anyone home.

Raven didn't seem threatened. "Roth."

"Parents."

"Arella and Trigon."

"Profession."

"Barista."

"Age."

"Twenty."

"What part of Gotham are you from?"

"I'm not from Gotham."

Bruce's brow actually jumped. It wasn't voluntary. That much was quite clear. "Where are you from, then?"

A light scoff slipped from her lips. She looked to Richard and he raised his brows as if to say, ' _I_ told _you that you looked like a Gotham girl_ '. With a shake of her head, she looked to Bruce. "I'm from Jump."

"Are you sure that you're pregnant with my son's child?"

Correction: _This_ was why Richard could never bring anyone home.

Even if Bruce was a bit of a celebrity, Raven looked thoroughly sick of this interrogation. Whether she was well rested or not, it was obviously too early for her, as well. "I'm quite sure that I peed on seven pregnancy tests."

" _Seven_?"

"I figured that since it's the _holy_ number, the answer would change, but it didn't. And now, I'm here. In the middle of the Wayne Manor. Speaking to Bruce Wayne about my pregnancy. Because I got knocked up by his son. Richard Grayson," she concluded in a deadpan.

For some reason, Richard felt his heart stutter a bit.

As Alfred made a weak attempt at choking and stifling a laugh down, Bruce watched her closely. Then, he looked to Richard, the first time that he looked at his son since finding out about the pregnancy. "I like this one." He looked back to Raven. "Come on, I'll show you Richard's baby pictures." At that, he turned and walked away.

Raven's arms fell to her sides and she blinked. She looked to Richard.

Richard shrugged a bit helplessly. He was just as surprised. Quite honestly, he was expecting his father to lecture both him and Raven, and maybe even Alfred about unprotected sex and unexpected pregnancies. Instead, he was offering to show her Richard's _baby pictures_.

"Should I follow him?"

And _hell_ , her voice was just _so_ _damned_ _sexy_.

"I think that you should follow him."

With an uncharacteristically childish yet impossibly adorable huff, she rushed after Bruce.

Alfred waited a beat before looking to Richard. "I knew that this would be interesting once your father found out. Didn't I tell you, Master Grayson?"

" _Alfred_."

The butler finally allowed a bit of that laughter to escape, pulled the door to Raven's bedroom shut, and followed after Bruce and Raven. "You should come. I'm sure that your father won't hesitate to show the more embarrassing photographs."

Actually, Richard was quite sure that his father wouldn't hesitate to do so and that the more embarrassing photographs would come _first_. Because of this, he was absolutely positive that it was much too early for this shit. Nevertheless, instead of returning to his room for more sleep, he followed after Alfred.

 


	3. Chapter 3

_Baby Daddy_ : Chapter Two

_**.** _

It didn't take Raven very long to get settled into the manor. She had, after all, shown up at the front door beside Richard with only the shoes on her feet, the clothes on her back, and a purse slung over her shoulder. But this was just a guess - the assumption that her settlement into the house had not taken long, that is. And this really was an assumption because within the full week that Richard had not seen her, he was also unable to see if she had been properly settled in.

"Not at all gentlemanly," Richard could imagine Alfred chiding him. "Not even in the least bit."

Considering the fact that they now lived in the same house, it really was strange to think that he had not seen her in a week. Actually, the thought of living in the same house with the woman he had impregnated was even stranger. But the strangest part of all was that it wasn't merely a thought - it was a fact. Raven Roth, the barista Richard had been fawning over, and consequently knocked up, was now living in the manor. This was now her home as much as it was his.

Quite frankly, the entire situation as a whole was just... _strange_.

Anyhow, the last time that Richard had physically seen Raven was last week during breakfast. It was the morning after she had been properly introduced to Bruce and after Richard proved to be successful in keeping his baby pictures hidden. That morning, she stepped into the dining area, greeted both Bruce and Alfred with a polite "Good morning", and sat in front of her plate of food which was coincidentally and consequently placed directly across from Richard's own plate.

A staring match ensued then.

Richard couldn't help but to think of how those violet eyes made his stomach turn with such excitement when they first met. During that very moment, those violet eyes were still making his stomach turn, though not in excitement, per se. Right then, she looked like she belonged in the dictionary beside the word 'challenge' or 'death'. Her expression would easily suffice for either one.

Then finally, with a scoff and a shake of her head, she uttered a _decidedly_ bitter: "How the _fuck_ did I let myself get knocked up by Bruce Wayne's kid?"

At that, she began to eat her breakfast.

Bruce immediately choked on his black coffee, one of the very few times that Richard had ever caught his father in a moment of vulnerability. Even more surprisingly, Alfred wasn't doing his job for once. Instead of making sure that Bruce wouldn't choke to death at the breakfast table at the hands of an unwitting and pregnant barista, the old man released a longwinded wheeze before choking out a fit of coughing laughs.

Richard, unfortunately, wasn't able to gain his own happiness from this. And so, he muttered out a rather pathetic, "Sorry."

Alfred wheezed. Again.

Bruce, who was able to finally stop choking, brought his mug up to his mouth.

Raven's response simply came as a short and dismissive snort. After this, she finished her cup of tea, thanked Alfred for the meal (who was far too busy laughing to notice), bid them adieu, and made her way to work.

It was dead silent after that, save for Alfred's laughter. Then Bruce set his mug down onto the table and looked to Richard. One corner of his mouth was turned _upward_ , which was to say that it wasn't turned _downward_ or even set _straight_. Before Richard could comment on that, not that he would even be able to do so at this point, Bruce spoke for the second time since meeting Raven: "I like this one."

Alfred had to leave the room after that.

But it wasn't like they couldn't hear his cackles, wheezes, and foot stomping from next door.

And that was the last time that Richard had seen her with his own two eyes. True, the manor was quite big, but it was still strange for him not to catch, at least, a little glimpse of her in a hallway. However, the manor wasn't the only place that he would be able to see her; it was just the most convenient - or was supposed to be. She still worked at the café, and whether she worked at the back or not, he could easily see her there as he had before. To make matters worse, he had even heard a rumor that Alfred had taken her shopping in order to replace all of the necessities that she was forced to leave behind.

A _rumor_. In _his_ _own_ _house,_ for goodness' sake!

But, for all he knew, she could have just up and left the manor, and gone back to live in Jump. She did mention a friend who would be willing to house her. Terra, was it?

Once again, Richard was able to see her in the house, and if not, he could catch her at the café. She worked there and he _was_ always there. He could see her at either place if he wished to do so. Which he did not.

And this brings us to the truth.

The truth being that it wasn't he had not _seen_ Raven around. He was _avoiding_ her. Now, this _truly_ was an _epically ironic_ turn of events when he considered just how much he had wanted her from the moment that he set his sights on her.

It wasn't that Richard _wanted_ to be avoiding her. Oh, no. He definitely didn't want to do that, especially when avoiding people, period, just wasn't in his character in the first place. He would actually prefer to be with her, not romantically, but in a friendly sense even if their longest encounter was in a bed. She was just a one night stand, and consequently, the mother of his child, but hell, did that woman have Gotham running through her veins. Plus, she really was just nice to look at. But, unfortunately and devastatingly for him, he couldn't even bear to do _that_ , either. Not without a guilty conscience.

When Raven declared how baffled she was at the reality of getting knocked up by Bruce Wayne's kid, Richard didn't take it personally - he couldn't. Not even when Alfred almost laughed himself to death. She really _did_ get knocked up by Bruce Wayne's kid, and because of this, she was kicked out of her own home by her father. Because of him, she was forced to suddenly uproot her life and move to a new and unfamiliar area. Although she played her own part in this, Richard couldn't help but to feel completely and totally responsible.

Avoiding her, however unconventionally noble his intentions were, was a bit stupid and very babyish. The universe, who had been having its own fun ever since this entire situation began, apparently thought the same.

And so, on one fateful Sunday night, the universe decided to continue having this fun with Richard.

It was the smell of something crispy that woke him from his slumber. Richard wasn't sure which food item this smell was coming from, and in true human nature, he didn't care. He didn't care that it was almost two in the morning and he didn't care to wonder just why it was that the smell of crispiness was flowing through the vents of his bedroom at almost two in the morning. Now that he was awake at almost two in the morning, he was just hungry for whatever this crispy food was. So, of course, he made his way for the kitchen.

"Thank you for cooking something up for me, Alfred," Raven's low and husky voice spoke, stopping Richard right at his tracks outside of the kitchen. "I hope I'm not being a bother."

Richard could have sworn that he heard the universe cackling its butt off. But that may (or may not) have just been the effects of the late hour and the smell of... Was that- Did he smell _chicken nuggets_?

"Oh," Alfred spoke. "You're far from being a bother, Miss Raven. It's not often that we have a guest gracious enough to aid me in starting my day off with a laugh and a smile at the expense of either Master Wayne or Master Grayson."

_Alfred_.

Raven chuckled that deep chuckle and Richard felt his throat constrict at the sound. And this wasn't right. At all. She was just a one night stand and the mother of his child (what an incredibly _bizarre_ thought). He had only invited her to stay with them to help her out. So, before he could start thinking about how much he actually missed the sound of her rough and gravelly voice when he shouldn't have even been caught up in describing the kind of voice she had, he finally stepped into the kitchen just as the oven began to beep.

"Ah," Alfred chirped with a smile. He spun around to silence the oven and grabbed a pair of oven mitts. "You're just in time, Master Grayson."

At the mention of his name, Raven sat up a bit and turned to look at him. "So, you've finally decided to come out of hiding."

Alfred coughed a bit, but Richard didn't pay him any mind because he was still stuck on how much she reminded him of his city. Now, she was here in this city. And _pregnant with his baby._

She arched a brow.

At that moment, it finally clicked in his brain that this was going to be a _long_ nine months.

_"Eighteen years."_

_"Maybe longer."_

Shit.

Unable to withstand her questioning and unwavering gaze any longer, Richard finally sat down beside her at the counter. He scoffed. "I haven't been hiding."

She responded with a scoff of her own. It sounded a bit mocking and he wouldn't have been surprised if it was meant to be. "Yes, you have. You haven't even been at the café."

"How would you know if I was there or not if you're working at the back?"

"Didn't I tell you that my coworkers think you're gorgeous?"

He did remember her saying that. "Touché."

A corner of her mouth turned up.

He managed to ignore just how cute she looked like that. "Maybe I've been too busy to visit your little café."

This time, her scoff was definitely and without a doubt meant to mock him. "Maybe. Although, I do doubt that. From what I've seen so far, you're quite boring."

Alfred's snickers started up and Raven ducked her head in an attempt to either hide or fight off a growing smile. Despite being the butt of the joke, Richard couldn't deny that he did miss her unique brand of humor. As much as he could miss the humor of his pregnant one night stand, that is.

Richard rolled his eyes and he caught the slightest hint of a very tiny smile playing at her lips. Pregnant one night stand or not, maybe he was wrong to avoid her. "Ha. Very funny."

The tiny smile on her face grew just a bit, although she did seem to be fighting it. "I'm sorry." Before he could vocally acknowledge the fact that she apologized to him, she continued with, "Not about that."

Of course.

"About last week," she resumed, much to his surprise. "I didn't mean to insult you like that during breakfast. If anything, your _father_ was the one who should have been insulted. I was just overwhelmed at the prospect of having Bruce Wayne's _grandkid_."

She looked a bit conflicted. Her brows were a bit knitted and her nose was doing that cute, little scrunching thing. No matter how adorable she looked, Richard didn't want to see her like that. "It's fine. It's not like I took it personally."

_"Ha!"_ the universe laughed.

Nevertheless, Richard continued. "You really did get knocked up by Bruce Wayne's kid." She snorted and he held back a chuckle. "Just don't let him hear you say the 'g' word. He's got a complex."

There was a chastising tut. " _Honestly_ , Richard," Alfred muttered with a shake of his head. He approached the counter and placed a platter of chicken nuggets before them, thus confirming Richard's suspicions. If he had not been watching the chicken nuggets, he would have noticed Raven's eyes lighting up at the sight of the food.

Once Alfred placed a small plate and a fork in front of each of them, Raven stuck her fork into three chicken nuggets, placed them onto a plate, and passed it over to Richard. At that, she took a napkin and the entire platter for herself.

Richard frowned a bit at his three nuggets before blinking up at her. "You're hungry."

"I'm hungry," she confirmed with a nod, her fingers dancing on the marble countertop. She looked about ready to devour the nuggets and the entire platter whole right then and there. "I'm starving, actually. I ate before going to bed, but I woke up at around one _craving_ chicken nuggets and vanilla flavored yogurt."

Alfred snapped his fingers. "Ah, yes. I knew that I was forgetting _something_." He went to the refrigerator and dug deep into it before pulling out a packet of yogurt. Once the door was shut, he stepped over to place it in front of the young woman.

Immediately, Raven took the yogurt and peeled the top off. She took a chicken nugget and dipped it into the yogurt. Once she made sure that there was an adequate amount of yogurt on the nugget, she stuffed it into her mouth.

"Bon appétit!" Alfred declared happily.

Raven released a contented sigh.

Richard, however, was ready to vomit. The French phrase 'bon appétit' could _literally_ be translated as 'good appetite'. A person who could sit down and eat something like _that_ obviously did _not_ have a _good appetite._ She worked at a cafe, so he automatically assumed that she would have a good appetite for food. She was a barista and made him a delicious drink, for goodness' sake. However, barista or not, she was also pregnant. Now, Richard didn't have much experience with anything or anyone related to pregnancy, but he was adamant in his theory that the _only_ people capable of enjoying such disgusting and revolting food combinations were _pregnant people._

But Richard would stay calm. After being awoken by such an enticing scent, he was looking forward to his chicken nuggets, and she was _not_ about to ruin his appetite. "When you said that you were craving chicken nuggets and yogurt, I didn't think that you actually meant _chicken nuggets and yogurt_."

"Tell me about it," she snorted before stuffing another yogurt covered nugget into her mouth.

Richard cringed.

"According to Elizabeth Somer," she continued with her cheek round and a bit puffed. "'The extreme hormonal changes women go through during pregnancy can have a huge impact on taste and smell'."

Very hesitantly, Richard picked a chicken nugget up. "It's safe to say that your sense of taste has definitely been impacted."

Raven shrugged, finished chewing, and swallowed the remaining contents in her mouth. She looked to Alfred. "Do you have any pickles?"

With a nod, Alfred walked over to the refrigerator, dug in, and emerged with three jars. "I've got three different brands. Which would you like?"

"All three."

Alfred nodded once again and placed the three jars in front of Raven. She turned the top off of one jar, pulled out a single pickle slice, and placed it in between two chicken nuggets. At that, she dunked the pickle-nugget sandwich into the yogurt and took a big bite.

Fuck Richard's appetite.

He placed the chicken nugget back onto his plate and shoved it away. He didn't know why he even tried. His appetite had no hope and was a lost cause from the very beginning. "You really are pregnant."

"As if I would lie about something like that to _you_." As Alfred seemed to be choking on a sudden laugh, Raven took Richard's plate and discarded the three nuggets into her platter before placing his plate back in front of him. "I wouldn't be sitting here eating this mess if I wasn't pregnant."

At least she knew it and could admit that her 'meal' was a mess. It was then that it dawned on him: living with a pregnant woman was certainly going to be rather interesting, to say the least. It wasn't living with a pregnant woman, but rather _who_ this pregnant woman happened to be.

Richard placed his elbows onto the counter and slapped his palms onto his face with a heavy sigh. The slap hurt a bit, but he needed it.

There was a crunch followed by another contented sigh. "Welcome aboard."

Well, at least he had a partner in all this.

"Thanks." He wasn't looking, but he was sure that she nodded just to dismiss him. It was silent after this and he could hear her chewing her food along with the sound of Alfred doing a bit of work. The sounds were a bit soothing, and only God knew just how badly he needed to be soothed at this point.

"Garfield tells me that you started coming to the café every day about last month," Raven began before correcting herself. "Well, you _used_ to come every day."

Richard nodded into his palms. "Does he think I'm gorgeous, too?"

"He thinks that you're pretty handsome for a potato."

That got Richard to look at her. "A _potato_?"

She didn't look at him, but she seemed to be fighting off a smile and thinking of a memory as she put another pickle-nugget sandwich together. "He's jealous of all of the attention you get in the back room. He's pretty glad that you haven't been coming in lately."

Richard didn't have to ask. He knew that _she_ wasn't participating in the little back room gush-fests. Not that he cared. He looked to Alfred and the old man, busying himself with cleaning, didn't look too concerned with the conversation. "Did you tell him? About us?"

_"_ _Us?"_ the universe asked slyly. _"I didn't think that you two were an_ 'us _'."_

"We're not," Richard almost spoke.

_"Well. Not yet,"_ the universe shot back.

"No," Raven said with a shake of her head, thus pulling Richard from his thoughts. She dunked the little pickle-nugget sandwich into the yogurt. "But I do think that he knows. Not about the pregnancy, but he looks at me every time they talk about you."

'They'. Not ' _we_ '.

Not that Richard cared. Once again.

"Which reminds me. If you ever do decide to come back, you have to meet Jinx. She wants to sit on your face."

Immediately, Alfred began to choke, coughing on his breath and the pure air that he had just been breathing.

"Why did you stop coming?" she continued as if Alfred wasn't currently choking to death. "My coworkers would like to know. Minus Garfield, of course." Finally, she placed the little sandwich into her mouth.

As Alfred poured himself a glass of water, still choking, mind you, Richard chuckled. He remembered Garfield, and it was a very brief memory. He was the one who practically encouraged Raven to flirt with Richard that night he had finally mustered up the courage to approach her. And in true Gotham girl fashion, she made it a bit difficult.

Finally, she met his eyes with her own violet ones and waited for his answer. She was completely oblivious to the effect that those eyes were having on him, even as she was chewing on that disgusting concoction.

Richard wanted to ask if she was wondering along with her coworkers, but there would be no logic behind his asking. Or safety, either. Any answer would just send him spiraling down _something_ that he did _not_ want to and _could_ not afford to be spiraling down. When she looked away to fix up another pickle-nugget sandwich, he spoke. "I've been feeling guilty."

Her brows knitted just a bit; almost indiscernibly. "Guilty? Why?"

Richard glanced at Alfred. The butler had moved on to sweeping. He didn't doubt that the old man was just masquerading his nosiness and his distrust for leaving two people of the opposite sex alone with doing busywork. Alfred was old fashioned, but honestly. Richard was almost tempted to reiterate the fact that she was _already pregnant._ How much further could they _possibly_ go if they were left alone in a kitchen at two in the morning?

_"Would you like to find out?"_ the universe teased.

Richard ignored it. "It's just that during breakfast last week-"

"I told you that that insult was meant for your father."

"Yeah, but you _really did_ get knocked up by Bruce Wayne's kid-"

"A fact that we've both already confirmed."

This woman. "I just feel, I don't know, _bad_ that you had to leave your home and had to come here."

Raven's face contorted so fiercely into a look that could only be described as pure and utter _disgust_. " _That's_ why you haven't been to the café? And why I haven't seen you?" Before he could even nod, she continued. "Don't insult me."

Richard blinked. "Excuse me?"

Raven rolled her eyes. "Is the guilt tearing you up inside, Richard? Do you just want to stay inside your room all day and hide?" She moved on to make another sandwich. " _I'm_ the one who had to move out. Hell, I'm the one giving birth to this child. How the hell do you think _I'm_ feeling? You don't see me hiding, and sulking, and bitching and moaning do you? No, you don't. I still go to work on a daily basis and live."

A pause.

"And I am also perfectly content with eating this pickle-chicken nugget sandwich dunked in vanilla flavored yogurt."

All Richard could do was frown. Not only because he had just been more than properly chastised, but because she really was enjoying that sandwich. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to overlook your feelings."

"It might just be a rich kid thing. I mean, you _are_ Bruce Wayne's kid."

" _Excuse_ me?"

Unabashedly, she took a bite out of her sandwich. "You have no business feeling guilty. And I'm not saying this to make you feel better. Don't be such a spoiled brat."

"You can't keep insulting me in my own house like this."

"Yes, I can. I'm pregnant. I can do anything I want, especially if you deserve it."

To say that Richard wasn't expecting that was a great understatement. But it wasn't like everything she said wasn't true. In fact, it was all true. All he had been thinking about was how uncomfortable this situation made him feel, but she had it way worse than he did in all this. As she said, he really was being a spoiled brat, she really was pregnant, and he really did deserve to get chewed out. "You're right. I'm sorry. I mean it."

"I accept your apology," she said simply. At that, Raven looked to Alfred, not at all interested in the previous conversation any longer. "Do you have peanut butter?"

Alfred, who had been silent up until this point, nodded and set the broom aside. He walked over to the refrigerator, opened the door, and dug in before emerging with two jugs. "Chunky or smooth?"

She looked at her food and thought for a moment before looking back to Alfred. "Smooth."

"Fine choice," Alfred said with a nod as he placed the jug in front of her. "I wouldn't be able to stomach being in the same room as you had you chosen the chunky."

"I'm pregnant," she said once Alfred placed a clean knife and spoon beside the jar of peanut butter. "Not gross."

Richard watched her take the knife and spread the peanut butter onto a pickle slice very neatly, as if she were savoring the moment, before dunking it into the yogurt and taking a bite. He frowned.

By now, it was safe to assume that both pregnancy and grossness went hand in hand. Yet, he couldn't deny that it was a bit endearing to see her enjoy something so disgusting as much as she was. As a bit of a smile creeped onto his face to replace his frown, he shook his head. "What do you think of the manor?"

"Well," she began tentatively. "My _hypothesis_ is that it's a pretty good size, and I'm also guessing that it's quite lovely, but the manor and I haven't been properly acquainted yet. My tour guide has been missing in action as of late."

_Goodness_.

Alfred made a choking sound.

Richard ignored that and looked to the timer on the oven. _2:53 AM_ , it read. Sure, it was pretty late, but it wasn't like any of them were going to bed anytime soon. So, he stood from his seat and his stomach turned a bit when her eyes followed him. "Maybe you can get your tour now."

At that, she stood and took the jars of peanut butter and pickles into her arms. "I'm taking my food with me."

Richard could admit that the manor was quite big. He wasn't blind, but after living there for so long, he had almost forgotten just how huge it was. Despite this, the tour certainly did a good job of reminding him of the size and of how amazed he had been when he first arrived as a child. Maybe it was because Raven had the same look on her face.

_"Doesn't she look_ absolutely _adorable?"_ the universe sang.

Richard ignored it.

As he carried the jar of peanut butter in his hands, because he was _not_ going to be carrying the _pickles,_ Richard showed her to the courts, the gardens, the greenhouse, the guest rooms, the bathrooms, the observatory, and the ballroom. Of course, Alfred trailed behind in hopes of getting a laugh. And of course, Raven, despite being awestruck and dipping a pickle slice into the peanut butter jar that he held, never disappointed.

After a few more jokes and a bit fewer rooms, they arrived to the library. She grew particularly quiet when they reached this room. In fact, she looked quite impressed, and understandably so. The library was probably one of the biggest rooms in the Wayne Manor, and this really was saying something. Bookshelves were stacked up against the walls and extended along the length of the floor. There weren't just books; there were also old almanacs, encyclopedias, and records - like an actual public library. It was all perfectly organized, from top to bottom, and had been so since the Wayne family had lived in this manor. Richard couldn't even imagine what would happen if the entire library was thrown out of kilter. It would be a nightmare to organize and fix up. Alfred definitely wouldn't be able to do it by himself, and Bruce and Richard certainly wouldn't let him.

Violet eyes flitted all around the grand library, attempting to take in its entirety. If she would just look up, she would have noticed that there were even a few chandeliers just overhead. Instead, she focused her attention on a bookshelf. They had been in the room for quite a while, the longest that they had remained in any room during the tour.

"Are you a reader?" he asked as she skimmed through the titles that were written on the spines of the books. She seemed to be looking for something.

Raven nodded. "Yes, but I wasn't able to take any of my books with me."

Now that Richard thought about it, he did remember her room being full of books. She had little stacks of them everywhere: on the floors of each corner, along the walls, on her dresser, and at her bedside next to a lamp. Her room could probably be classified as a mini-library. It was obvious that she loved to read, so he could only imagine how she felt being in a library so grand and so extensive.

Richard never spent much time of his own in the library, not unless it was for school. But at this moment, he wished that he had not taken this blessing, and it was a blessing judging from that look in her eyes, for granted. She had even set her jar of pickles down to search and investigate more closely. That alone was enough to cause his guilt to unravel once again. "I'm sorry."

Quietly, she scoffed and rolled her eyes. "Do you do anything besides apologize and get people pregnant?"

From behind a bookshelf, Alfred's wheeze was heard.

Before Richard could correct her and tell her that she was the _only_ person that he had ever gotten pregnant, she released a breath and took a book out of its place. "You get everything you want. Don't you?"

It was obvious that she finally found what she was looking for. Richard could tell from the brightening of her eyes and the way that she caressed the cover of the book before opening it. Maybe it was time for him to learn how to appreciate some books. "Most of the time."

"Bruce Wayne's kid," she muttered to herself as-a-matter-of-factly with a shake of her head. "Spoiled brat."

Richard ignored Alfred's wheezing and began skimming through the book titles. It was quite obvious that along with Bruce, Alfred liked her, too. And Richard? He didn't think that she was so bad. Not so bad, at all.

 


	4. Chapter 4

_Baby Daddy_ : Chapter Three

**_._ **

It had been about a week and some days since Richard last visited the café. It wasn't strange to be back, especially when his regular seat, the little table in the back corner, was free and available for him to retrieve. It felt the same as it did before he stopped coming. The café was still small, the guitar strings, piano keys and smooth saxophones that emanated from the speakers were still soothing, and the warm summer air still never detracted from anyone's comfortability nor did it take away from the delectable scents that permeated and pervaded the air.

Richard hadn't expected the café to switch up in the one week and few days that he had been gone. Honestly speaking, after receiving the news that he would soon become a father, he wouldn't have been surprised if things really had changed. It was nice to see that some things remained the same, even if Raven really was working in the back this evening. Admittedly, this had him feeling a bit uneasy. In fact, her working in the back had him feeling _extremely_ uneasy, because her working in the back meant that someone _else_ was manning the front.

Garfield.

The young barista had been staring Richard down, sending him death glares ever since he walked through the door that afternoon and well into the evening. It wasn't even as if Garfield was being conspicuous about this glaring - in fact, he wasn't even _trying_ to be conspicuous. He was being completely transparent and forthright with his glares as he worked, and Richard wouldn't have been surprised if the customers who were being served felt a bit put off. But if they were brave enough to follow Garfield's line of vision, they would soon learn who the daggers were meant for.

It was strange to see such an angry look on Garfield's young face, because the last time that Richard saw him, he was incredibly happy. Now, he was incredibly pissed. Richard had even tried to fake-read to escape his look, just as he had done when he had first spotted Raven, but it didn't work. Not this time. He could still _feel_ the darts and daggers being thrown at him as he stared at the sentences printed onto the worn pages of his book, and he was almost tempted to turn his chair around. He was even more tempted to throw his book at the young barista. His aim was pretty spot on, and the café was empty enough for him to do it and leave fast enough to get away with it.

After reading the same sentence at least ten times in a row, Richard felt a tingle run down his spine, and he looked up.

It was Garfield.

_Glaring_.

Okay, this was beginning to get ridiculous - not to say that it wasn't already. Richard was _not_ about to let Garfield the Barista, some guy in an _apron_ punk him out. So, he set his book down and made his way to the front, never breaking their gaze. This time wasn't as anxiety driven as the first. There was a pretty girl on the other side last time. Now, there was a petty barista.

Richard pulled up a stool and sat. "Hey."

Garfield's glare didn't let up even a little. He simply regarded the other man with a short nod. "What can I get for you today, Pretty Boy?"

Honestly, did everyone who worked at this café have a thing with nicknames? Richard shook that off because it was probably true. "I didn't actually want to order anything. I was just wondering about something. Correct me if I'm wrong," he began. When Garfield nodded, Richard continued. "From my seat over there, I thought that I could feel you staring-"

"Nope. That sounds just about right."

Richard blinked. "Actually... it felt _more_ like glaring-"

"Wait, that sounds even _more_ right."

Richard glared.

Garfield braced his hands flat onto the counter, and he glared right back.

Beside Richard, a woman sat with a steaming mug. She looked between the two of them before releasing an awkward and uneasy chuckle. Carefully, she picked her mug up. "I'll just - uhm. Ah. I'll just go somewhere... that's not _here_."

As the woman scurried off, Garfield simply offered a chastising ' _tsk_ ', shaking his head as if it were the older man's fault. Richard ignored that. "Do you have a problem with me?"

"Yes, I do."

All right, now it was _definitely_ ridiculous. "How could there _possibly_ be a problem between us? I don't know you, and you definitely don't know me."

Garfield's eyes narrowed just a bit before he looked around for any listeners. When he saw that they were free from any eavesdroppers, he leaned in a bit closer to Richard. "I don't have to know you, because what I _do_ know is that exactly one month ago, you were sitting right here flirting it up with Raven. I know that about a week after that, she requested to begin working at the back. I know that as if _that_ wasn't suspicious enough, _you_ stopped showing up. You've been sitting your pretty ass in that same seat in the back corner almost _everyday_ for at least one month before you encountered Raven."

The younger man was extremely calculative, something that Bruce would really appreciate. But he also looked suspicious, highly suspicious, which led Richard to the conclusion that perhaps Garfield the Barista really did know a little something. But Richard couldn't let him know that. "You don't like me because you think that something's up?"

"That's just the first reason." Garfield crossed his arms and braced his elbows onto the counter. He leaned in a bit closer as he did so, and his bright, green eyes glinted with distrust. "You see, my coworkers seem to think that you're absolutely gorgeous. An 'eighth day creation', if you will: a creature that God Himself deemed _so_ important that He actually got up _after_ the seventh day, His day of rest in order to form this creature with his the care and precision of his own fingertips."

"That's pretty... dramatic." Raven wasn't joking about her coworkers. With a bit of a smile, Richard raised a brow. "So, you don't like me because you think that something's up, _and_ because you're jealous."

That broke Garfield. He stood up straight and threw his hands up into the air in disbelief. "No _duh_!" he screeched, his voice briefly disrupting the calming atmosphere of the café and startling a few people. "Dude, you're _not_ even that cute! Even _Raven_ said so!"

What a surprise.

"Listen, I don't have to like you and you don't have to like me," Garfield continued, and he pointed a finger at the older man. "But Raven's been acting weird, and that's the third reason. You're here now. Whatever you did, you better fix it."

Richard felt his stomach turn. What the hell was he supposed to say to that? _"Oh, I'm so sorry for getting your friend pregnant, for getting her kicked out of her house, for having her eating chicken nugget and pickle sandwiches dipped in vanilla flavored yogurt for breakfast, lunch and dinner everyday, and for potentially ruining her life. Please, forgive me."_

Richard swallowed that down with a sigh. "Raven's lucky to have a friend like you."

Garfield blinked in shock, then his face grew just a bit rosy. He looked at his pointed finger, then fisted his hand with a scowl. "Don't try to butter me up now, Pretty Boy."

The door behind Garfield opened before Raven walked through, and she stopped to look between the two men. She had on that same apron, and her thick hair was still stuck in that messy bun at the nape of her neck. It felt like it had been forever since Richard last saw her like this, and she looked cute. _Really_ cute. But also, confused.

She closed the door behind her and crossed her arms to regard Richard with a short nod, jutting her chin toward him. "What the hell are you doing here?"

What a _freaking_ surprise.

Before Richard could respond, Garfield nodded approvingly. "You tell him, Raven-!"

She held a hand up and rolled her eyes. "Gar. Please."

Garfield hesitated a bit before releasing a heavy and whining sigh. "Fine. But if you need any backup, I'll be right here-"

"My goodness, Garfield," Raven muttered. She walked to the backdoor and opened it, gesturing for him to walk through it with a waving hand. "May you please walk through this door?"

Garfield pouted, then he looked to Richard, glaring at him one last time before stepping through the door. He turned around with a shaking finger pointed to the ceiling. "And _another_ thing, Pretty Boy-!"

Raven slammed the door shut, and a laugh spewed out of Richard's mouth before he could stop it. When she arched a questioning brow, he coughed and cleared his throat. "Your friend, he doesn't seem to like me very much."

"Yes, well," she sighed with a roll of her eyes. "He's very protective."

A smile crawled onto his face. This obviously wasn't the first time that she was forced to deal with her friend's overprotective behavior. "He's a very good friend."

Raven scoffed, and with a shake of her head, she finally released the door knob and made her way over to the counter. "Don't let him know that. That'll only encourage him. Can I get you anything?"

He thought for a bit and nodded. "The same drink you made me before."

"The chocolate oolong berry tea," she clarified for him before she turned to begin working on his drink. "You still didn't answer my question: what are you doing here?"

His eyes followed the slight movements of her messy bun as she worked. Several of the deep plum colored strands and tendrils spilled out to dangle over her shirt or to stick onto it. He really had never seen anyone with such a strange hair color before unless it was artificial, and even then, it couldn't compare to hers. "I could say the same for you."

"Oh, please. I work here."

"You work in the back, remember?"

Finally, the drink was finished, and she approached the counter with a large, steaming mug in hand. She placed it in front of him carefully before crossing her arms and resting her elbows onto the counter. "I'm only up here because Jinx has been badgering me to do so for the past hour and a half. I needed to shut her up."

Richard chuckled, and took a sip from his drink. Somehow, it was even more delicious than the first time he had it. He set his mug down and licked his lips, and he caught those violet eyes of hers flicker down to them before meeting his eyes. "I think we both know why she wanted you up here so badly."

Raven nodded, but there was a look of annoyance on her face as she looked off to the side. "Honestly. I just wish that she would suck it up and politely ask if you would grant her the permission to sit on your face."

The tea that Richard had been sipping immediately lodged itself in his throat, and he coughed a few times. He blinked back the tears building up at the corners of his eyes. "Listen, you have got to stop saying that out loud."

She shrugged and took up a lock of her hair to inspect, completely unconcerned with his coughing fit. Although, a smile did seem to be fighting to come out. "If I had known that you were coming, I would have caught a ride with you in your fancy, little car instead of taking the train this morning."

Richard watched her, making sure that she wasn't going to have him choking again before he took a tentative sip of his drink. "Well, you're riding with me tonight, right?" When she nodded, he continued. "I didn't plan on coming. I was... bored. I thought I'd stop by."

She stopped the inspection of her hair, and met his eyes. His stomach turned a bit at their transparency. "You were bored," she repeated in a deadpan. "You've got the largest collection of books that I've ever seen in your home, a library, and you were _bored_?"

Behind Raven, Richard caught a glimpse of a few heads peaking and ducking behind the glass window of the backdoor. "It's not like I spend time in there."

She snickered a bit, and resumed examining her hair. "Of course not. What good is a library to Bruce Wayne's pretty boy child?"

" _Raven_."

" _Richard_ ," she mocked.

He rolled his eyes. "Pretty boy child? I thought you said that you've seen better."

"Oh, I have. Those 'betters' that I talked about were very handsome. I said that you were pretty. There's a difference, and it's a bit of a stab to my self confidence for me to admit this, to be quite honest, but you might be prettier than me."

"I highly doubt that."

She met his eyes, unimpressed, but she did allow herself to smile - just a bit. "Welcome back to our humble café."

He smiled at that. Even though she was a bit of a smart ass ("A _bit_?" the universe asked before releasing a cackle of disbelief.), it really was nice to be speaking with her. Especially after his short bout of avoiding her, no matter how noble is efforts were. The fact that this woman wasn't from Gotham was unbelievable and almost unfathomable. "Garfield wasn't nearly as welcoming. He really doesn't like me. Is it because you're-"

Immediately, Raven had her hands flat over his mouth. She looked from side to side before meeting his eyes. "Shut up. No. It's not. Because he doesn't know. Okay?"

Her brows were knitted and her eyes were wide, the most worried that he had ever seen her. Quite frankly, Richard didn't even think that she was even able to get to this level of stress, and he definitely didn't want to see her like this. He took her hands from over his mouth, and surprisingly enough, she didn't fight him. Instead, she allowed him to place her hands onto the counter. "I'll shut up, okay?"

Raven watched him for a bit, hesitating before she nodded with a sigh. "Fine. I'm sorry. They just... They just don't know."

"It's fine," Richard assured her, and he could have sworn that he had seen a ghost of a smile on her lips. He cast a glance behind her head, and he caught the stare of someone's eyes through the window. The eyes widened before they disappeared. He fought a smile. "None of your friends know?"

"None of them know," she confirmed. "I like them _way_ more than I like my family, and I'm not sure how to tell them. Garfield is obviously suspicious, and it doesn't help that I had pickles and mayonnaise for lunch today."

Richard felt his face contorting itself into a look of pure repulsion. "Jesus, Raven, that's disgusting."

Raven laughed, her lips turning up and into a bright smile that lit her entire face up. She looked down to see that his hands were still over hers on the counter, and she slipped her hands out from under his. With a slight pursing of her lips, she tucked the lock of hair that she had been examining behind her ear. "You did this to me," she said with a hint of a smile. "Remember that the next time I eat another strange meal. Do your friends know?"

"No," he said with a shake of his head. He didn't know why, but he was a bit disappointed that she didn't leave her hands under his. But this disappointment certainly was wrong. Raven wasn't his. She was just having his baby. So, he continued. "But I'm not the one who'll be... showing pretty soon."

Raven crossed her arms and braced them on the counter, and swept her eyes over the expanse of the café. "There are three minutes left until closing time. If you tell your friends, I'll tell mine."

A pair of green eyes peaked through the window, but they didn't make an attempt to disappear when Richard caught them. They stood firm, glaring at him. "Deal."

She released a breath, as if he had just aided her in lifting a huge weight from her shoulders. Then she nodded. "So, tell me. How long have they been peaking through that window behind me?"

It took all of Richard's strength not to look over her head and through that window. "You knew?"

A smile crept its way onto her face, an impish one, and she looked even cuter than she already did. "You kept looking over my head. 'The soul, fortunately, has an interpreter - often an unconscious but still a faithful interpreter - in the eye.'"

He felt his stomach tumbling, not because he was caught, but because of her little quoting act. Impossible as it was, that made her even cuter. Who quoted books anymore? Because of that, he could feel his lips turning up and into a smile of his own. "What were you quoting?"

"Charlotte Brontë's ' _Jane Eyre',_ " she answered with an arched brow. "You would have been able to guess at the very least if you took the time to read one book from your little library once in a while."

At the back of Richard's head, he was almost _positive_ that Alfred had just burst into a laughing fit with no clue as to why. Before he could answer, a voice spoke behind him.

"Good night, Raven!" a man bid her, and the smile could be heard in his voice. It was a customer leaving, and others could be heard doing the same. "I'll see you tomorrow! Tell everyone else I said 'good night'!"

Raven nodded with a wave. "Have a good night, and good luck on your dissertation."

Richard raised a brow as the customer laughed that off before the jingle of the front door opening was heard. "How do you know that he was working on his dissertation?"

"The longer you work here, the more you learn about regular customers," she answered as the rest of the customers began to make their leave, waving to each of them. "That man I was just speaking to is studying Philosophy and is about to enter his final year of college. A girl walking behind you is sixteen, going on seventeen, and was planning on running away to the Alps before Terra stopped her. This couple at the door is on the verge of breaking up because both of them are thinking of switching teams, but are afraid to tell each other." She met his eyes with a pointed finger. "And this pretty boy sitting at the counter is a spoiled brat with baby mama drama who is about to meet her friends."

How did he _not_ see that one coming?

"Very funny," he drawled. She simply raised a brow in response, one corner of her mouth curving upward. "Don't call yourself that."

Raven pushed herself off of the counter and stood up straight, brushing his request off. She walked to the backdoor and grabbed the doorknob. "The café is now closed. Are you ready?"

Richard looked at the window, then met her eyes. He nodded. "Ready."

She returned the nod and turned the doorknob, before she pulled the door open. Almost immediately, her coworkers fell through and onto the floor, toppling over one another at Raven's feet as they each offered their own brand of excuses.

"Oh, Raven! You got news shoes! Nice!"

"I just wanted to get a quick look at him!"

"I got a new piercing, and I guess that the level of concentration in the metal is so strong that my entire body was drawn to this magnetizing door."

"This is a wooden door-!"

"Rae, I tried to tell them to get away from the door, and I got caught up in the crowd!"

" _I_ was _totally_ eavesdropping, and you are _so_ lucky that we couldn't hear anything, Pretty Boy!"

It was quite obvious who _that_ one was.

Raven hesitated as they continued to offer their excuses. Then she shut her eyes before taking in a deep breath. "This is Richard, I'm pregnant, and he's the father of my child."

Everyone fell silent right in the middle of their sentences, and Richard's jaw dropped. 'Shocked' wasn't even the proper word to describe the looks on all of their faces as they looked between Raven and Richard. Some of them couldn't even look between them because they were stuck. Hell, even Richard was shocked. He wasn't expecting her to just blurt it out like _that_.

"You- you guys... _did it_?" Garfield squeaked into the deafening silence, scandalized. " _Gross_! I didn't even know you _had_ sex, Raven! I didn't even know that you _could_! I didn't-! Wait-! Oh, no, I just imagined it-! _Make it stop_ -!"

"Oh, _Raven_!" a coworker squealed. "You've got new shoes _and_ a new baby on the way! That's even _nicer_!"

"Nice?! That's not _nice_! This is _gross_! Gross, I tell you! A sin against nature itself!"

"The only _sin_ over here is how unfair this whole thing is! How come Raven gets to sex table number twelve all the way up _and_ have his baby?!"

Raven looked to Richard. "Right. Richard, this is Jinx. Jinx, meet Richard."

In the midst of all of the voices, Richard stood from his seat and leaned over the counter in search for this Jinx. He searched all of the faces before he finally spotted a red and flaming one. This was definitely her. So, with a smile, he waved. "Hey."

As impossible as it seemed, Jinx actually turned even redder before her eyes rolled back and she fell faint.

Raven looked disgusted.

But she didn't look half as disgusted as Garfield did. "Dude, get this guy _out_ of here!"

_**.** _

A sigh.

"I feel much better now."

Thankfully, this was when they approached a yellow light going on red. They were on their way back to Gotham, and their car ride felt a bit more relaxed due to the warm air of the summer night. Driving around with Raven this time felt much more different than it did the first time. That first time was incredibly uncomfortable, and had to be eased by the radio. She had just gotten kicked out of her home for being pregnant, and he was taking her to Gotham City for the first time. They barely knew each other then. This time was... different. It was nice. Nic _er,_ much nicer than the first time. It was more relaxed, easier - the way that summer nights were supposed to feel, whether they were unbearably warm or unexplainably cool. He still barely knew her, but he could say that he knew her a bit more. Maybe enough to call her a friend.

Richard looked to her. On her face was the most languid smile, her head reclining onto the seat's cushion as she watched the road before her. Her hair was mussed up by the wind, and the sight of her so messy and so relaxed made him chuckle. "Of course. Who wouldn't feel like that after blurting out that you were pregnant the way that you did?"

Her smile grew as she laughed. "I didn't mean to blurt it out like that," she said as she turned her head to meet his eyes. "I was nervous."

Along with the laughter dancing in her eyes, he could also see the fatigue. But when that was paired up with how her pale skin seemed to be glowing ethereally under the moonlight, he decided that this was a pretty good look on her. "I don't know why. Your friends were pretty accepting and excited for you."

A pause.

"Well, everyone except for Garfield. What's his problem, anyway?"

Raven snorted, but her smile remained. "He's bigger than me, but he's like my baby brother. He thinks that it's his job to go after anyone he finds suspicious if I ever start acting weird." She turned her head to face the road once again. "The light's green."

With a bit of a start, Richard looked away from her and to the stoplight to find that the light was green. He was lucky that roads were empty at this time of night. He and Raven would have already been at the manor had he not been interrogated by her coworkers.

_"How old are you?"_

_"Are you currently in school?"_

_"You know, you can't really support a baby without a job."_

_"You're not giving this baby up for adoption are you? I want to spoil them."_

_"What's your social security number? ...for investigational purposes."_

Richard shook his head at the memory, and he stepped onto the gas pedal to drive past the light. The warm air breezed through the windows, and the heady scent of coffee beans and tea spread throughout the car. This was a smell that he would definitely get used to. "You have very good friends."

"Thank you." The smile shined through her voice. "Yours won't question me like mine did you, will they?"

Richard shook his head. "I don't think so."

"When will you tell them?"

"Soon. We had a deal, remember?"

She didn't respond, but he guessed that she nodded. It was silent then, a pleasant silence. One that didn't need to be covered up by the radio or awkward small talk. It was then that they finally approached the massive gates of the manor. They opened with a dragging creak, and he caught her startled jump from the corner of his eye. "You get used to it."

"I shouldn't have to," she huffed. "And you shouldn't have already done so. Your father is Bruce Wayne. He has more than enough money to fix that disgusting sound."

If only Bruce were there to hear that. They drove past the gates, and they closed behind the car with the same, dragging creak, and she jumped again. "The big guy likes it. He finds it authentic."

"Authentic, my ass," she grumbled.

Richard bit back a grin. Oh, if only Bruce were to hear _that_ as well.

"The little, blond woman, her name is Terra. She's the one who asked if we were going to give this baby up for adoption. You seemed very... put off when she asked."

His brow jumped. That certainly was random, to say the very least.

"You're very transparent."

Oh, right. The eyes were the interpreters of the soul, and whatnot. So, he answered her question. "I'm adopted. I'd never want to put a child up for adoption, especially if I had the means to care for them."

"You're adopted?" she asked, her voice laced with surprise as he drove the car into the garage, the soft humming sound of the garage door creating a bit of a buzz. Once they were finally parked, he looked to her and met with her curious eyes. She tapped her chin. "That's why you're a Grayson while your father is Wayne. You look nothing like him, so I thought that you got your looks from your mother. What happened to your parents? Did they give you up?"

Honestly, as nice as her eyes were, he did feel a bit uneasy speaking about this with her. Once again, they barely knew each other. But he had to admit that given the situation that they were in, this conversation was bound to arise. He was going to have to get to know her, and vise versa, even if this learning process was to begin in a garage. "Not really. They died when I was young."

Raven blinked in shock. "Oh." Then her lips turned down into a frown, and she fiddled with her fingers a bit. "I'm sorry."

"It's fine." And he wasn't just saying that to get that frown off of her face. It really was fine, and he had come to terms with his familial situation years ago. "Bruce took me in when I was eight. I'm an orphan, but I've lived in foster homes and gone through the adoption process. It's horrible. I'm grateful to have been taken in by Bruce, but I don't want anyone going through that, especially if I can help it."

All of a sudden, Richard felt drained. He wasn't one to just spill out his life story like that, and he had to admit that it felt strange to do so. Especially in a car sitting in a garage. But then, she smiled that tired smile, and that helped to alleviate a great amount of his discomfort. "That's noble of you. Do you remember them?"

"No," he answered truthfully with a shake of his head. "But I went over the autopsy reports a few years back with Bruce, and I found out that he was an orphan, too. It was a bonding experience."

She pursed her lips. "That's sweet. Incredibly morbid. But sweet."

He laughed, and they both stepped out of the car, shutting the door behind them before he led her out of the garage. "Story time's on you next time."

"I'll read you a book," she told him before she followed him into the manor's foyer, only to be met with Bruce and Alfred.

"Master Grayson. Miss Raven," Alfred drawled out with a polite nod to them both. "Master Wayne and I have been expecting you."

It looked like the two men had been waiting for them to arrive for quite some time - and Bruce looked _pissed_.

Richard and Raven glanced at each other. Then she took one step away from him. "I just got here, so I can't possibly be in any trouble."

Richard released a heavy sigh.

"Actually," Bruce began as he took a step forward. "We're all in trouble. Each year, the mayor of this godforsaken city throws an annual Holiday Ball in celebration for the holiday season and the upcoming new year. And each year, he or she, in a tradition passed down from one mayor to the next, sticks the responsibility of hosting the ball onto some poor sap."

"Please," Alfred interjected. "Take one _wild_ guess as to who the poor sap is this year, my dear children."

A laugh erupted from Raven's mouth. When everyone looked to her, she covered her mouth with a hand and cleared her throat. "Sorry. Continue."

Beside Bruce, Alfred fought a growing smile.

"This year," Bruce began. "I am the sap."

This time, Richard laughed, and Alfred's smile grew.

"I make it a point to avoid hosting this stupid ball each year," Bruce continued undeterred. "Last year was my tenth year in a row that I managed to escape the plans that the mayor had for me to host."

"Considering how many years a mayor has gone without actually hosting a ball themselves, that is a record," Alfred commented.

"My record is broken," Bruce declared. "Now, do you know _why_ my record is broken? Do you know why _I_ am the sap this year? Don't answer either of those. I'll tell you. It's because my son, Richard Grayson, will be embarking on his journey into his final year of university soon. Because of this, the mayor is _positive_ that if you show up, they'll have a much larger turnout of young people at the ball than they've had throughout the previous years."

Richard's face fell. "You can't _possibly_ be blaming this on me."

"I am," Bruce declared, and Raven coughed several times while Alfred's upper lip wobbled.

"I'm not going to that stupid ball," Richard argued. "I never go."

"You're going this year," Bruce retorted. "The mayor is expecting _you_."

Finally, Alfred doubled over and released a long, extended wheeze. A bit of a laugh slipped through Raven's lips as the butler stomped his foot and allowed his boisterous laughter to escape.

Needless to say, Richard wasn't nearly as happy. "But-!"

"'But' nothing," Bruce interrupted. His mouth turned down and into a scowl. "You listen to me. For some reason, you _refused_ to keep your dick in your pants-"

Alfred knelt down to the floor with giggles. _Giggles_. His laughter had turned into joyous and high-pitched _giggles_ that had Raven smothering her own laughs with her hand.

"And decided to _turn_ _me_ _into_ _a_ _grandfather_ at the age of-"

Alfred tugged on the bottom of Bruce's pant leg.

Bruce snapped his mouth shut.

Richard looked to Raven.

Raven blinked. Then she turned away and took to examining the wall beside her very thoroughly, all of a sudden extremely interested in its architectural quality.

"You- you- you almost told them your _age_ , Master Wayne!" Alfred cackled as he smacked a hand onto the marble floor. And at that moment, it became obvious that despite his laughing fit, he was still competent enough to do his job.

Bruce grew red, and it was clear that this conversation was finished. "That mayor _chased_ me down, I'm a grandfather, and we are _all_ going to this damned ball. I'll get you some more information in the morning. Good night." At that, he turned and made his way out of the foyer.

Alfred's giggles dwindled down, and he finally stood to his feet. "Ah," he chuckled lightly as he fixed his tie. "Miss Raven, we'll have to go dress shopping soon."

Raven frowned and put a hand over her stomach. "Can we do food first? I'm hungry."

"Of course," he said with a nod, and he began to lead her away and to the kitchen, leaving Richard behind. "What do you have in mind?"

"How do you think baked potatoes smothered in Italian dressing, mayonnaise and Tabasco with cheese flavored chili on the side would taste?"

Sweet Lord sitting on His throne in heaven above. It was a miracle that Richard had not thrown up right then and there.

"I think that it would taste utterly disgusting," Alfred answered.

Raven chuckled.

"I also think that this baby will be a very fat and happy one."

A smile grew onto Richard's face at that. Then he shook his head, shrugging that off before making his way to his room.

 


	5. Chapter 5

_Baby Daddy_ : Chapter Four

**_._ **

She was glowing.

Literally _glowing_.

And he wasn't exaggerating.

It was strange to think that ' _glowing_ ' was the word being used to describe what she was doing at the moment, simply because within the short amount of time in which they had known each other, she never glowed. There were certain moments when she _glowered_ and scowled, and sometimes her eyes lit up or even brightened whenever she laughed, smiled or spoke about something. But Raven never _glowed_. Yet there she was, sitting in the lobby of a doctor's office and waiting to be called for her ultrasound, just _glowing_.

It was universally known and recognized fact that pregnant people glowed, this was just one of their _things_. Not only did these people grow larger and eat everything in sight, edible or not, but they also glowed. From what Richard was seeing, it wasn't an obnoxious or blinding glow, not like the sun on a sweltering summer day such as this one. Instead, this was a subtle glow. It caught your eye and kept it. It was actually almost disconcerting.

He knew that it would happen, this little glowing act, and the only reason that it was so bothersome was because it really wasn't so _little_. Not anymore, and especially because he was seeing it happen for himself. It was a pretty big thing, one _huge_ thing, that a human being could carry an even tinier and _growing_ human being inside of their own body, and consequently end up _glowing_ because of it.

Simply put, she was radiant, and despite how unsettling it was, he did have to admit that this really was a good look on her.

"So, I was in the library the other day."

Richard blinked, and suddenly, the sounds of the lobby hit his ears. The murmurings of the other waiting patients, the droning of the receptionist calling out the names, and the voices that came from the television in order to keep the children occupied.

Raven was looking dead at him, just _glowing the hell away_ , and eating one of her disgusting concoctions. Today's meal was a new invention of hers, as all of her little meals seemed to be. But today, however, was different, she claimed. This meal was one that she absolutely could _not_ deny herself: a peanut butter and tomato paste sandwich with slices of pineapple inside. On _wheat_ bread. With _pickle juice_ on the side to drink - straight from the jar.

 _Ugh_.

Even if pregnant people did glow and house growing fetuses inside of their bodies, they were still undeniably disgusting humans who _voluntarily_ kept water bottles filled with _pickle juice_ in their purses. So, Richard allowed the statement to click in his head: she was in the library the other day. So? She was in the library _every_ day. Other than her bedroom, the library was her favorite room of the entire manor. Other than the kitchen, of course.

"What a surprise."

"I've come to the realization," she continued undeterred with a warning look. "That you guys might be carrying every book imaginable, English and foreign. And that's including every genre, author, and age group, from child to adult. Not to mention the different subsets of each category."

"You do know that you're _way_ too smart for your own good, right?" he blurted out before he could stop himself, and it was true. "Hopefully, this baby comes out with your brain."

She chuckled, and he noticed that her face was a bit rounder. It wasn't a big change, but it was inevitable that he would notice it since he saw her every day. Her cheeks were puffier and the bottoms of her eyes rose up a bit faster than they used to whenever she laughed or smiled, but given how much she loved to eat, the weight gain really was unavoidable. She was much too food happy, and along with glowing, being food happy and having puffy cheeks and squinty eyes was also a pretty good look on her. She was actually even cuter.

"Surprisingly enough, you guys are missing one book. A very important one."

Richard started in confusion. What book could _they_ possibly be missing? This was the Wayne Manor - the Gotham City Public Library came to _them_ whenever they had certain books out of stock. It was strange for them to be missing a book, but he trusted her instinct. She was obviously well-read. "Really?"

Raven nodded.

"Which book are we missing?"

"Charlotte's Web."

"Charlotte's Web," he repeated, and she nodded. Richard wasn't much of a book enthusiast, definitely not like her, but he did remember being forced to read this book in elementary school. "That's a kiddie book. Why would we need that one in our library?"

She snorted, but there was a growing smile on her face as she rolled her eyes. "Oh, please. Charlotte's Web is a book for all ages." She arched a brow. "And how would _you_ possibly know which books are kiddie books or not? You don't read."

"I like to read text messages."

"And I like to read books, specifically that one."

"Raven, you like to read _every_ book." She chuckled again, and it prompted him to shake his head with a growing smile. "I wouldn't be surprised if you liked to read the dictionary."

"I do like to read the dictionary."

Honestly, it was supposed to be a silly, little joke. But he really could see her sitting in the middle of her bed, or even on the floor of her bedroom with a dictionary on her lap and a highlighter in one hand, just laughing it up whenever she found a new word. "You like the dictionary?"

"I like the dictionary," she confirmed with a nod.

"Quick: what's your favorite word? Give the definition and why."

"Whippersnapper. A young and inexperienced person considered to be presumptuous and/or overconfident. It's my favorite because it describes one _very_ spoiled brat I met this summer-"

" _Raven_."

This time, she released a happy laugh instead of a chuckle, and her violet eyes lit up with mirth. Seeing her like that, even if it was at his expense, didn't bother him too much. No matter how disgusting her food choices were or how petty her jokes were, she did provide good company. So, he allowed a short chuckle of his own to escape. "Okay. You like the dictionary. But what's so special about Charlotte's Web?"

"It's my favorite book, and I read it a lot as a child," she began before her brows knitted. "Have you read it before?"

"Once, when I was younger."

"Remember Wilbur the pig?" she asked. When he nodded, she pointed to the television screen. "That just reminded me."

On the television screen, there was a pig made of paper mâché. It was obviously a children's show, but a good amount of the children had long forgotten about the television, choosing to go ahead and play instead.

"That's an ugly pig," she spoke a bit quietly, musing thoughtfully to herself aloud. "Don't you think?"

A snicker slipped out of his mouth and he nodded as he looked back to her. As ugly as that pig was, she sure did seem intrigued by it. "You like pigs?"

"Yes," she answered as she continued to watch the show. Finally, after a moment, she met his eyes. "They're cute."

"You think that pigs are _cute_?"

"I think that pigs are _very_ cute."

Well, Richard certainly didn't expect _her_ to like _pigs_. Raven liking to read the dictionary made much more sense than her liking _pigs_. Yet, another slow smile was sliding onto his face again at the new revelation. "That's cute."

Raven blinked in surprise, and a light and rosy color began to spread across her face. Then she shook her head with a short chuckle and took a bite out of her sandwich.

He cringed at the sight. "Maybe I'll get you a pig. It should distract you from eating all of that nasty stuff."

She snorted. "You're so spoiled," she spoke with a cheek round and full with food. "Of course you can get me a pig. I'd just share the food with him."

"Come _on_ , Raven, that is so gross-!"

"You haven't even tried any of my stuff-!"

"That's because it's all disgusting-!"

"Here, just take a piece-"

"Keep that far away from me-"

"I promise it's _very_ good-"

" _Raven_ -"

"Raven Roth!"

The two put the harshly whispered argument to a halt and looked up to see the receptionist standing beside his desk, reading a clipboard. His brows knitted and he clicked his tongue before he looked around the lobby. "Is there a Miss Raven Roth?"

Raven looked to Richard. "That's me."

"Just put that _sandwich_ away, and you can get going."

She stood with a laugh, and gathered her things before she began to approach the receptionist. Then she stopped and turned to look at him. "Aren't you coming, baby daddy?"

Richard didn't know why, but he had to admit that he was a bit taken back, not by the nickname, because she had _plenty_ of those for him, but because she wanted him to go with her. But he was the _baby daddy_. So, he stood and followed after her, making sure that he didn't let the shock show, although he really wouldn't have been surprised if she could tell with that 'eyes are the windows to the soul', and whatnot. "I thought I told you not to call me that."

"You told me not to call _myself_ a 'baby mama'," she corrected. "You said nothing of yourself."

This woman.

Before Richard could say anything, the receptionist smiled brightly as he extended a hand. "Raven Roth for the ultrasound? It's a pleasure. I'm Garth. I was unaware that you would be bringing a party. Is this your husband accompanying you? Your boyfriend?"

"He's my baby daddy."

 _This woman_.

"Holy- _Raven_!"

Raven snorted and ducked her head, letting it hang low as she attempted to fight the laughter off, but he could see her shoulders shaking.

Richard rolled his eyes because he could just feel the smile growing onto his face. He sighed and took Garth's outstretched hand. "Nice to meet you."

Garth nodded with a short chuckle. "Likewise. And don't worry, whether you're a husband, boyfriend, _baby daddy_ , or even just a friend, anyone who is looking to support is welcome to do just that: support. Now," he released Richard's hand and began to lead them out of the lobby and into a hallway. "If you'll just follow me."

As they followed after the receptionist, Raven cleared her throat and looked to Richard. "Sorry."

"No, you're not." And it was true. Her upper lip was wobbling, and a smile was just begging and fighting to come out. She couldn't look anymore unapologetic.

"Oh, come on. It was the perfect opportunity, and you know that you would have taken it."

"Yeah, yeah," he grumbled because she was absolutely correct.

She smiled because she knew it.

"Here we are," Garth announced once they arrived to the room, and he began flipping through the clipboard in his hand. "Raven, you can sit on the bed while you wait for the doctor. You can sit on the chair by the door over there, baby daddy."

Richard sent her a look.

She pointedly ignored it and chose to step onto the box in front of the bed before hiking herself up to take a seat.

"Room 232," Garth read aloud a bit distractedly as he skimmed through the page. He flipped it to the next page and nodded with an approving, "Ah." He took a pen out of the pocket protector attached to his button-down shirt and began to jot something down. "It says here that you're scheduled for an ultrasound. You're still pretty tiny, so I can only assume that this is your first ultrasound for this pregnancy. Am I correct?"

Raven nodded. When Garth continued to read his notes, she realized that he wasn't looking at her and had not seen her nod. "Yes. My first."

"You're pretty young, too. So is baby daddy, over there. Is this the first child for both of you?"

She looked to Richard, sending him a look that screamed, " _Your turn_!"

Richard looked to Garth and found that the receptionist was still carefully reading the paper in front of him. "Yes. For both of us."

Garth clicked his tongue, making a noncommittal sound in his throat as he jotted another note down. Finally, he looked to them and a frown grew onto his face, marring his handsome features. "Jeez. You guys are so young. I mean, don't get me wrong, I'm no _crypt keeper_ myself. It's just that we get young people everyday, a _lot_ of them even younger than you, and _most_ of them are stuck as single parents. It's... It's pretty sad." He nodded with a short smile. "I'm proud of you two for sticking together."

Richard didn't like the way that little speech made his stomach turn. It wasn't like they had a choice. Even if they _did_ have a choice, it wasn't like he would have let her handle this alone. He looked to Raven and found her watching Garth suspiciously. Her brows were knitted and her mouth was pursed ever so slightly. It didn't look like she appreciated the little speech, either.

After a moment, she set her jaw. "Thanks."

Garth nodded with another smile. This one wasn't so short, and it seemed to be easing her a bit. "You're welcome. And I mean it, I am very proud of you guys," he repeated as he set the clipboard onto the small table that stood against the wall. "Now, don't worry, Doctor Stone will take good care of you two."

At that, he bowed with a polite smile and made his way out, leaving both Raven and Richard in a uncomfortable silence. Silences between them were rarely ever this tense, and he knew that she felt it judging from the way that she was staring down the path that Garth had taken.

There was a heavy sigh.

"Please," she began tentatively, her low and husky voice deeper than usual. "Don't be offended. I was never one to just sit around and daydream about babies. I never even wanted a child. But I did always imagine that if I ever were to be in preparation to give birth to my first child, my mother would have been right by my side." Finally, she met his eyes and looked to him, shaking her head as her own eyes grew wide. "Not that I don't appreciate you being here with me, because I do. I appreciate _everything_ that you and your family have done for me. It's just that-"

"It's just that nothing is going the way that you expected," he completed for her.

"Exactly." She watched him for a short moment and seemed to be debating something. Then she looked away and shook her head. " _Nothing_ is going the way that I expected."

The way she said that broke his heart. He felt horrible because this was the first time that he was hearing of her true feelings regarding the pregnancy. Even if they were now living together and she was the mother of his child, the truth remained that he didn't know anything about her. While she knew of his past and background, Richard didn't even know when her birthday was, and the only reason he was hearing this was because there was a receptionist who " _believed in them_ ".

Richard felt like even more of a spoiled brat than she claimed he was. He frowned. "I'm sorry."

A light scoff slipped out of her lips. She would have looked like the picture of serenity had it not been for how fidgety her fingers had suddenly become on her lap. "This isn't your fault. It's _mine_ ," she forced out as she began tugging at her fingers. "I'm not supposed to be pregnant. I'm not supposed to be _here_. I'm supposed to be interning at my father's company and training to take over. This is what I get for not following that _stupid_ plan he had set up for my life. And now, my mother, she isn't even here with me at my first ultrasound."

Richard had never seen her so stressed. Frankly, he didn't even know that she _could_ get this stressed. He wasn't an expert on this stuff, but he was _pretty_ sure that this level of stress couldn't possibly be good for her or the baby. He stepped up to her and pulled her hands apart. When she gave him a look, he held her hands up for her to see. "You were going to pull your fingers out of their sockets. Clean."

Raven blinked and she looked at her hands with a shake of her head. She chuckled and pursed her lips. "Sorry. I do that sometimes when I get nervous." She met his eyes and her head fell to the side as she watched him. "Do you think that's cute, too?"

" _You_ getting _nervous_?" He matched her brow. "Actually, I do think that's very cute."

Her eyes seemed to roll of their own will. "You can stop flirting. You already got me pregnant."

He laughed, and he could see her fighting the smile off. "Were you serious when you told me that you were planning to take care of this pregnancy by yourself when I found you that night?"

She looked taken aback, and he understood. That night was over a month ago. But she nodded. "I was very serious. I knew that my parents were going to kick me out and I knew that my friends would be willing to help me, but I also knew that the responsibility would be mine."

"So, if I hadn't found you, I wouldn't have known?"

"Nope. I would have taken care of this baby all by myself, like I said. And I would have done it, too, if it weren't for a meddling spoiled brat."

A chuckle slipped out of his mouth and her smile finally escaped as he watched her. "That's very big of you, very brave. I really am sorry that you couldn't have your mother with you through this. The journey into motherhood is something that every woman should share and experience with their mother."

"Exactly," she said with a nod. "I always imagined that she would be by my side and giving me advice. It's just strange and a little unnerving for her not to be here. But I appreciate your help and I appreciate you being here with me. Thank you."

He opened his mouth.

"I suppose you're not such a spoiled brat, after all. Huh?"

He shut his mouth.

"Don't get me wrong, this is very selfless of you. But you are _still_ a spoiled brat, very much so."

" _Raven_."

She threw her head back in laughter, and he found himself fighting a smile off. She sat up as the remaining giggles continued to spill out of her mouth, and her eyes were lighting up with mirth as she met his own. "I have to ask you something."

"Shoot."

"Why did you come after me that night, anyway?"

"What, I can't keep up with one of my one-night stands?"

When her brow jumped, he suddenly remembered just why he was in this little predicament. She was _intriguing_ , probably the most intriguing woman he had ever encountered when they first met. Of course he would go after her even after the night they shared, especially when she pulled a disappearing act on him. She was still intriguing, even now when she _wasn't_ supposed to be. She was just supposed to be the mother of his child, and still, she continued to intrigue him. She thought that pigs were _cute_ , for goodness' sake.

But he couldn't tell her any of that.

"Didn't I tell you that it's my job to look after Gotham girls?"

Raven snorted, her eyes growing wide as she laughed. "You spoiled brat!" she laughed. "I told you that I'm not from Gotham."

"Woah-ho-ho!"

They both looked to see who had entered the room, and found that it was a man. A very big man, actually. He seemed to be searching for something in the room, but he did take the time to offer them a teasing and suggestive wink. "I'm not interrupting anything, am I?"

Richard felt Raven tense. Suddenly, he remembered that he was still holding her hands in his, and he released them.

"D'aw," the man whined with a dismissive wave of his hand. "My bad. I hear that you're here for an ultrasound. Don't worry, you can keep doing the sexy salsa, the Humpty Dumpty, and the swiveling hip boogie up until the ninth month. Take it from me, the utility closet down the hall is quiet and soundproof, it locks, and it's _always_ empty at around this time, so you can hurry into there once we're finished. Consider it my gift to you for ruining the moment."

Raven grimaced. "No, we weren't about to-"

Richard's stomach turned. "Up until the ninth month? That's disgusting-"

"Aha!" the man declared with a bright smile as he picked the clipboard up from the table. "These things always seem to blend in," he mumbled to himself as he reached into his back pocket. He took out a pair of glasses and slipped them onto his face. "Okay. Now, I can doctor it up." He approached them with a kind smile and extended a hand. "Doctor Victor Stone, pleased to make your acquaintance."

The two glanced at each other before looking to Victor. Although she was hesitant, Raven took his hand and shook it. "You're the doctor?"

"Try not to look _too_ surprised, little lady," he teased as he released her hand to shake Richard's. He began reading through the paper attached to the clipboard, just as the receptionist had done before him. "My long, white jacket suffered a terrible accident earlier, but I am indeed Doctor Victor Stone, and according to these papers, you are Miss Raven Roth, which means that this handsome young man over here is Mister Baby Daddy."

Richard's jaw dropped and a laugh immediately spilled out of Raven's mouth.

"Garth already likes you two," Victor supplied as he flipped a page. "He says that you two give him hope for the young people or something. You'll soon learn that he likes to get on his soapbox _a lot_." He took a pen out of his pocket and clicked it. "All right. Raven, do you mind if I ask you a few questions?"

Raven almost nodded. Then she noticed that he was still reading his papers, and she stopped herself. "No. I don't mind."

"It says here that this is your first pregnancy," Victor began before meeting her eyes. "Since this is your first scheduled appointment with you, I'll need to ask you a few questions. This is to ensure that everyone in this room knows everything and anything that might have an effect in the pregnancy. Okay?"

Raven nodded. "Okay."

Victor returned the nod and looked to his clipboard. "Are there any disorders or diseases that you have or any that run in your family?"

She thought for a bit before shaking her head. "No."

He 'checked' a box. "Do you smoke or drink?"

"No."

Another 'check'.

"Is there anything that you know may affect the baby, that I haven't asked a question in relation to?"

"No."

Another 'check'.

Victor pumped a fist into the air with an joyous, " _Booyah_!"

Both Richard and Raven jumped, but the doctor barely even registered the shocked and surprised looks on his patients' faces as he chuckled and jotted something down.

"This baby is already healthy by a whole _25 percent_!" he exclaimed as he read the information. "Your turn, baby daddy. Any diseases or disorders in your family?"

Richard looked to Raven.

She shrugged a bit helplessly. "Just answer," she mouthed.

Richard sighed and looked to the doctor. "No diseases or disorders."

'Check'.

"Do you drink or smoke?"

"No."

'Check'.

"Is there anything that you know may affect the baby, that I haven't asked a question in relation to?"

"No."

'Check'.

"Booyah!" Victor declared once again, and he took a few more notes. He chuckled. "50 percent down the road to healthiness. This kid is going to live!"

Richard felt the smile growing onto his face as Raven laughed. This doctor was... _eccentric_ , but he did know how to get his patients comfortable. "How do we get to 100 percent?"

Victor stabbed the paper, pressing a period into it before sticking the pen into the air. "Ah. I'm glad you've asked, baby daddy."

"Uhm. My name is Richard."

"And I'm going to keep on calling you 'baby daddy', baby daddy," Victor declared with a smile. As Raven returned the smile, he walked over to the door and pressed a button on the intercom beside it.

A low beep.

_"Yes, Doctor Victor?"_

"Would you mind sending in the nurse for Room 232's ultrasound?"

_"Of course, Doctor Victor."_

A low beep.

Immediately, a young woman was rushing into the room with a cart. "Ugh," she groaned as she set off to work, pulling drawers out and opening cabinets before taking items out to set them onto the cart. "Sorry it took me so long. I had to deal with those twins again. Not that you know the twins. Not yet, anyway. Just know that _I_ had to deal with them. _Again_."

Raven's jaw fell slack and she looked to Richard. "I just want you to know that _Alfred_ is the one who found this place and set the appointment up."

"I'll take this," the young woman said as she took the clipboard from Victor and handed him a long, white jacket. "The baby poop one got sent to the wash," she explained as she approached the couple with a bright smile. "Hello, I'm Karen and I'll be your nurse for the remainder of this pregnancy. You two must be Miss Raven Roth and Mister Baby Daddy."

Raven clapped with a laugh.

It was obvious by now that making an attempt to get his real name out there was pointless. So, Richard ignored Raven's snickers and nodded. "Nice to meet you."

"Likewise." Karen began to flip through the papers of the clipboard before settling on one page. "Hm, it says here that this baby is already healthy by exactly 50 percent." She handed the clipboard to Richard. "Hold this."

Richard blinked. "Wait-"

"Now, say 'ah'."

Both Raven and Richard shirked back.

"Hold on-"

"Excuse me-"

Karen stuck a cotton swab into each of their mouths, wiping down their cheeks and the flats of their tongues. Thus, effectively drawing out a long, albeit very confused ' _ah_ ' from them both. "This is just for testing. We want this baby at 100 percent, don't we?"

They both nodded. Well, as much as they could nod with a woman's hand up their mouth. After a few short moments of wiping, Karen took the swabs out and held them at her sides. She smiled. "All done. Not so bad, right?"

Behind her, Victor, now dressed in a proper and long, white jacket fit for a doctor, pressed another button on the intercom.

A pair of identical twins came rushing in and up to Karen, disheveled and excited. They each for a cotton swab before she held them up. She gave them each a stern look. "No more trouble. Bueno?"

The twins sighed and nodded. "Bueno. No más problemas."

Karen lowered the swabs, and each twin grabbed for one before scurrying out. She simply took the clipboard from Richard and read through it. "Interns. They're always in a rush." She pulled a pen out of one of her hair buns and 'checked' something off before meeting Raven's eyes with a smile. "You'll receive the results of the cotton swab test in the mail in about two weeks. Are you ready for your ultrasound?"

"What she means to say is," Victor began with a chuckle as he approached them. "Are you ready for a _100 percent healthy_ baby?!"

Karen didn't look at him. Instead, she simply chose to point her pen at him, waggling it in his face. "I _know_ what I meant to say, Doctor Victor." Then she pointed the pen to Raven with a smile. "I'm going to need you to lay down, Raven."

Raven started, blinking once before she nodded and followed the nurse's directions.

"All right," Karen began as she held the clipboard out for Victor to take. Once he grabbed it from her, she reached for the cart, took a pair of gloves and pulled them over her hands. "This is your first ultrasound. The first is usually performed in order to confirm the pregnancy, check the fetal heartbeat and for the possibility of multiple pregnancies. We can even determine the age and make an estimation of due date."

Victor smiled. "Isn't science a beautiful thing, kiddies?"

"This," Karen continued undeterred as she took a jar from the cart. "Is called a 'coupling gel'. This will be smeared over your stomach and will help the sound waves to travel properly during the ultrasound."

Raven nodded and watched as the nurse set the jar back onto the cart. She reached for the bottom of Raven's shirt and began to raise it. Raven moved a bit to make it easier as the fabric was lifted to reveal her stomach. It was still pretty flat, which came as a surprise to Richard. He knew that it was still early in the pregnancy, but he did expect her to get at least a little pudgy from eating so much.

Karen picked the jar back up and twisted the cap off. "It's pretty cold," the nurse warned as she began to gather up some of the gel in her gloved hand. "So take a deep breath."

Raven took in a breath, watching as the gel was taken out of the jar. Her brows knitted a bit as it inched closer to her and she swallowed. Once it actually touched her stomach, she gasped and her hand shot out to grab Richard's.

Richard looked to her, watching her for a moment before allowing his hand to close around hers. She released a sigh, relaxing quite visibly as Karen began to smear the gel onto her stomach, and he found himself fighting a smile.

As Karen applied the last of the gel onto Raven's stomach, Victor walked over to what seemed to be a small television screen and pressed a button. Karen rolled her gloves off and placed them onto the cart before grabbing a small, white stick. "This is a transducer. This little wand is what's going to help us see what's going on in that belly of yours. Ready?"

Raven nodded.

Karen returned the nod, placed the wand onto Raven's stomach and looked to the screen. All that could be seen was little blobs in varying colors of pink and orange. "You can't see anything. Can you?"

Both Richard and Raven shook their heads, and Victor smiled as Karen removed the wand. "This is the traditional 2D ultrasound scanner . But if you switch it up to the new and improved _3D_ ultrasound scanner-" He flipped one switch down and flipped another one up. "You can see everything much more clearly."

Karen pressed the wand back onto Raven's stomach, and an entirely new image was on the screen. They could see everything inside of Raven's stomach in stunning detail, even a few organs. "Right over there, you can see the bladder and the spleen."

"And this right here," Victor pointed to a specific area on the screen. "Is-"

"The baby," Raven spoke quietly and in disbelief, rendering the entire room silent. "We can... We can already see it so clearly." Her hand tightened around Richard's hand. "That's inside of me?"

"Yup," Karen confirmed with a nod as she watched the screen. "And growing quite healthily, I should add."

Richard felt his heart drop down all the way to the soles of his shoes as he watched the screen. There it was, already so clear in 3D. The baby. _His_ baby. He did that. It was-

"Unbelievable," Raven breathed. Her head fell onto bed. " _Fuck_."

"Tell me about it," Victor laughed with a bright grin as he held his clipboard out. "We're up to _75 percent,_ folks!"

And he 'checked' his paper.

_**.** _

The car ride home was a quiet one. Not due to any awkwardness or discomfort, but because they were both exhausted. Who wouldn't be exhausted after their first ultrasound? After seeing the first, _real_ images of their first child? After discovering that it was growing healthily at seven weeks and that it could possibly be due sometime in March?

It was _unbelievable_ , as Raven had said. But it was also taxing to receive _this_ kind of information in one sitting - and so much of it.

Richard opened the door to the mansion, allowing Raven to go before him into the foyer, and he shut the door behind him.

Alfred was standing there waiting for them. His hands were folded behind him and his back was straight and erect, the picture of a polished man.

Raven crossed her arms. "The last time this happened, we got forced to go to some stupid ball."

Alfred smiled. "I must admit that I missed your humor today, Miss Raven." When she smiled, he looked to Richard and continued. "Master Grayson. You have a visitor."

As if that were his cue, the one and only Jason Todd stepped into the foyer with a huff. He pointed a finger in Richard's face. "I'm gone for two months, and instead of traveling or doing something even _remotely_ fun, you went ahead and got some chick pregnant?"

"I'm not a chick."

"She's not a chick."

Alfred bowed. "I shall go and make myself busy by thoroughly dusting at either a lamp or a very old book." And he made his way out.

"You haven't even finished college yet, Richie Rich," Jason continued his berating as if he hadn't heard a single thing, and Richard wouldn't have been surprised if his friend had not heard anything other than himself. "This is your last year, and you do this to yourself? To _us_? Man, I'm your _friend_. If you wanted to become a daddy, I would have voluntarily and willingly driven _you_ , my _best_ and _dearest_ friend, to an adoption agency or something. I would have _even_ typed in the words 'adoption agency in Gotham' into Google for _you_ , man! _Word_ for fucking _word_ , man, for _you_ , and we would have been on our merry, parental way with my trusty GPS. But no, you want to go ahead and do this, as if you don't trust me-"

Jason stopped and looked to Raven, blinking as if he had just noticed her for the first time since beginning his tirade. "Wow. You are really hot."

It was a miracle that Richard hadn't slapped his forehead right then and there.

"I'm also the random chick who's pregnant with your friend's baby," Raven retorted with an arched brow. "Which means that you're not allowed to look at me like that."

Jason was a bit taken back by the response, and it was obvious. But he let it roll off of his back and released an easy chuckle. "I _obviously_ didn't mean that 'random chick' comment, because you are obviously not a _random chick._ It was just a 'heat of the moment' kind of thing. You know how it is."

Raven simply watched him, giving him a look that told him that she absolutely did not know how it was, and Richard laughed.

Jason shot him a glare before giving Raven a smile. He held a hand out for her. "Jason Todd. Richie Rich's best and most loyal friend."

She watched his hand before uncrossing her arms to shake it. "Raven."

"Raven," he repeated as his smile grew. "I'm sure we all know that this kid is going to be pretty popular at the sandbox, and _not_ just because Brucie Bruce is his grand pappy, if you know what I mean."

Raven pulled her hand away. "I'm hungry." At that, she began to make her way out.

Richard smiled at the dumbfounded expression on Jason's face. He cleared his throat and looked to her. "You're always hungry."

"Whatever," she called out. "And tell your friend to stop looking at my butt."

Richard looked to Jason and found that true to her words, he was looking right at her butt. He grabbed Jason's chin and forced him to meet his eyes. "You heard her. Stop looking at her butt."

Jason whistled and it faded into a laugh, his face looking a bit deformed as his cheeks were smushed in his friend's hand. His eyes traveled, looking in the direction she had taken. "Well, where-" Richard shook his face, making Jason meet his eyes. "Where in Gotham can I get myself one of _her_?"

Richard smiled a bit. He wasn't surprised that Raven had gotten Jason Todd's stamp of approval. "She's from Jump."

" _Jump_?" Jason's brows knitted, and his face was released as soon as Richard was sure that Raven was out of sight. She was just the mother if his child, but he didn't want people just _ogling_ her. Especially if she didn't want it. "Damn, Richie Rich. What the hell were you doing all the way in Jump?"

"It's a long story," he said as he began to lead his friend to the door.

"A long story, and you're forcing me out of your home, my friend?" Jason whined even as he was allowing his friend to lead him out. " _Our_ home?"

Richard ran a hand down his face. "Listen, you take this whole bromance thing a bit too seriously."

Jason laughed. "Now that I think about it, there are still a few people who think that we're lovers. Not that _I'll_ be the one to put a stop to those rumors."

"That's because you're the one helping to start them."

Jason didn't deny it. He simply reclined onto the door, crossing his arms as he watched his friend with a sympathetic frown. "I heard that today was your first ultrasound."

Richard nodded and released a heavy breath. "Yeah. I saw it."

" _It_? Like, the _kid_? Well, what did the little runt look like?"

"Not much," Richard began hesitantly. Now that he thought about it, there really was no way to describe it. "I just _saw_ it. She's only seven weeks along and I could still see it."

Jason inhaled sharply through his nostrils. "Richie Rich is going to be a daddy dad. Or poppa pop." He shrugged. "And the kid's getting good genes from both sides, especially from momma bear. Seriously, how the hell did _you_ manage to knock a stunner like _her_ up-"

Richard reached for the doorknob and pulled it open. "Goodnight, Jason."

With a chuckle, Jason simply stepped past the door, waving as he walked down the stairs. "Okay, okay. I can tell when I'm no longer wanted. Tell momma bear I said goodnight."

Richard shook his head as he shut the door and locked it before making his way into the kitchen. He found her sitting at the counter, squeezing a ketchup bottle over a carton of Rocky Road ice cream. Beside the ice cream sat the bottle of salt. He sighed in disgust, but he approached the counter anyway and sat across from her. " _Jesus,_ Raven, you _can't_ be serious."

She didn't even look at him. She was much too preoccupied with making her snack perfect to do so. "You heard Karen. This baby is growing _healthily_ , which means that I don't have to give my food up."

His upper lip curled in disgust as when she set the ketchup down and took the salt to sprinkle it over the ice cream. "If she had said otherwise, you would have given it up?"

"Unfortunately," she said with a frown. She set the salt down, took her spoon, dug it into the ice cream and stuck it into her mouth. She made a sound of approval, her eyes wide in excitement. "I don't want to share it, but you have _got_ to try this one."

"It's all yours," Richard offered as he held his hands up with a shake of his head, and she chuckled as she scooped up another spoon. "Sorry about Jason."

Raven shrugged as she nibbled on her spoon. "I almost felt like I had driven a wedge between two lovers before he started flirting with me."

"I'll be sure to tell him that. He'll be way too happy to hear it."

"I believe it. He seems territorial."

"He is. In tenth grade, he convinced half of the school that we were lovers because he was afraid that someone else was going to take his spot as my best friend."

Raven laughed, her eyes growing wide as she did so. "Really? He's not going to come after me, is he?"

"No," Richard chuckled as he watched her dig through the ice cream carton. She took the salt and sprinkled a bit more over it, and he felt his stomach turn as he remembered how her hand shot out for his own in that examination room. And it wasn't right. Feeling like this wasn't right at all.

Richard looked away and cleared his throat. "He thinks that you're way too cute."

Raven snorted as she stirred the ice cream before she took the spoon to put it into her mouth, and he looked up just in time to catch her glowing again. Suddenly, he remembered just how much he had been wanting to learn more about her. This was as good a time as any to get started.

"When's your birthday?"

She looked up and met his eyes in shock. "That's random," she spoke, the spoon's handle sticking out of her mouth as she spoke. "That is _very_ random. Why?"

He shrugged a shoulder, a smile growing onto his face at her blatant suspicion. "I'm just curious."

She watched him for a moment. Then she took the spoon out of her mouth. "October 31st."

"Halloween," he said with a nod. He raised a brow. "Did you eat a lot of candy as a child?"

She nodded. "I have a horrible sweet tooth. I had to get three teeth taken out because my cavities had grown so bad. Not that it stopped me." She stuck the spoon into her mouth. "When is yours?"

"November 11th."

"One month before Christmas and a few days before Thanksgiving. No wonder you're so spoiled."

" _Raven_."

She laughed.


	6. Chapter 6

_Baby Daddy_ : Chapter Five

_**.** _

There were a lot of _sparks_ between them. Those pesky, little things just floated between the two of them almost absentmindedly, both constantly and consistently. These sparks bounced off of each other, stealing and gathering energies from one another as they threatened to ignite burning flames, both literally and figuratively, and it was all because the two of them simply refused to keep their hands off of each other. They _couldn't_. Even after being married for a few years and having one child thrown into the mix, they _could not stop_ touching each other.

Richard still thought that his wife was just as stunning as she was on that night that they had first met, sometimes even more. He still found her snark, sarcasm and brilliance endlessly endearing, and those were all just a few of the qualities he'd found in her, all of which he wanted in someone that he would be proud to call both his wife and the mother of his child. Raven, however, still thought that he was a spoiled and entitled brat, and rightfully so - yet, she still stuck by his side and put up with him. She was still incredibly quick and never too proud to call him out on his nonsense, and she was still just as frisky as she had been on their first night together, still so receptive and responsive to his touch.

Even now as he was fucking her hard against the door of his old bedroom, her strong and meaty legs wrapped around him as the hem of her little sundress was hiked up and rumpled at her waist, she was somehow managing to beg for more whilst simultaneously making a weak attempt to bury her cries into his neck.

The primal part of him _loved_ it when she was like this: so unabashedly horny.

His wife had been teasing him all morning, building up the anticipation as their little family prepared to set off for their trip to the Wayne Manor. Now, although the word 'tease' _did_ insinuate that the teaser wouldn't satisfy whatever they had roused from within their poor victim, they both knew that she would make sure that they were _both_ quite thoroughly satisfied. Once they made sure that everything they would need was packed, they each took their respective seats in the car, he put the vehicle into drive, and she began her little _game_.

She would egg him on by brushing the padding of her fingers over the skin of his arm or the back of his neck with slow and gentle strokes, tracing little patterns into his flesh oh-so-softly. She would bite into her bottom lip, digging her teeth into the soft and sensitive flesh until it became red and swollen, right before she curled her lips into that dangerously coquettish smile. She would hike up the hem of her little sundress until it reached the middle of her thighs every time they approached a red light, meeting his eyes as if she was dangling the possibility that she was wearing no panties underneath - almost _politely_. She would even slide her window down, letting the warm summer breeze that passed through and into the car turn her long, thick locks into an absolute mess, because she _just knew_ what the sight of her with hair like that reminded him of.

Quite frankly, it was a miracle that he hadn't pulled the car over, taken her to the backseat, and had her screaming his name and fogging up the windows of the rocking car in broad daylight as traffic passed them by. He knew that this was why she was wearing that sundress, one that stopped right above her knees - for easy access. It even had those thin, little straps that crossed over in the back, straps that they both knew he could snap off in a split second if he wanted to - and he _did_ want to, and once again, he was _sure_ that she knew it. In fact, the _only_ reason he didn't follow through with any of his dirty plans for her was because the car's third passenger, their sweet and _innocent_ child, was sitting in the backseat and looking forward to seeing Grandpa Bruce and Mister Alfie, completely oblivious to the little game that was being played in the front of the car.

Once the Grayson family finally arrived to the Manor, the buzzing couple left both their luggage and their child in the care of Alfred before scurrying off to find Richard's old bedroom.

After this, the games ended and the _real_ fun began.

Raven threw her head back with a soft cry, allowing him to see her beauty as she grabbed for his shoulders. Her brows were knitted tightly above her closed eyes, the sweat on her face making her flushed skin glisten under the warm summer sun that lit up the room through the windows. Her jaw had fallen slack and no matter how hard she tried to keep it from doing so, her swollen lips would fall open and form a little ' _o_ ' shape, one that allowed every one of those beautiful gasps, moans and whimpers that she tried to keep quiet spill right out.

Richard smiled at the sight. It was nice to see her like this, so lost in the pleasure of it all that she couldn't even keep her eyes open or her mouth closed. She was absolutely gorgeous and perfect, and she was _all his_. He leaned into her, placing a kiss into her neck before biting down and sucking. There would undoubtably be a mark there, one that would stand stark and apparent against her pale skin, and that was exactly his intent. Bruce would definitely call him out on it, especially since they both basically abandoned their child and parental roles in favor of acting like horny teenagers, but Richard didn't care.

It felt good to finally be buried deep inside of _her_. It felt great to have _her_ shaking and jolting in his arms as if she had been struck by lightning every now and then as she released little gasps or sudden shouts of his name. It felt amazing to have _her_ biting, scratching and clawing at his skin, tugging at his hair, and growling into the air, just like she did that first time. It was exquisite simply _because_ it was her, _his wife_ , and who knew? Maybe they could even get another kid out of this.

With a stuttering sigh, she released her grip on his shoulders and hugged him closer to herself, her fingers burying themselves deep into his hair. She fisted a handful of his thick locks and tugged with a quiet grunt. " _Oh, Richard_."

His eyes fell shut at the sound of her voice and he groaned into her neck, his fingers digging into the ample and fleshy meat of her behind. He pressed her body deeper into the door with his own. That was all he needed to hear. Just a _little_ more and she would be-

_"Mooooooooommy!"_

The sound of that wondering and curious voice drew a gasp out of Raven as her back grew erect, and he immediately stopped as his eyes flew open. Her heavy and shuddering pants sounded a bit panicked in his ears, but to be quite honest, Richard wasn't surprised that their child had sneaked off to find Raven. There was an attachment there that he was too proud to admit he was jealous of.

So, he removed a hand from its spot on her behind and grabbed her thigh as he prepared to set her down. "Rae-"

"N-no," she countered in the midst of her soft pants that were grazing his ear. She took in a calming breath and let it slip through her lips before she began to run her fingers through his hair, her touch sweet and tender. "Keep going."

 _Well_ , he thought as a corner of his mouth curved up. Who was he to deny his own wife?

Richard nudged her neck with the very tip of his nose before placing an open-mouthed kiss there, and she finally relaxed into his hold with a choked sigh as he tasted her sweat soaked skin. _She was delicious_ , and he knew that he would never tire of her distinct flavor. He slid his hand up her thigh, caressing her hot skin before he gripped the meat of her behind hard. Her body practically _buzzed_ in appreciation, and at that, he resumed pumping in and out of her with slow, patient and deliberate movements.

Raven shuddered with a soft moan and placed a short kiss into his hair, her fingers tugging at his locks once again. "You feel so good," she whispered into his tresses, drawing a short groan from him. She placed another kiss into his hair and pushed her fingers through it before clearing her throat. "Y-yes, baby?"

 _"Mommy, what are you doing_ in there _? I need you to come_ out here _."_

Richard almost snorted. This was definitely _Raven's_ child. "Don't worry," he called out, his words a bit muffled by her neck. "Mommy's coming soon."

" _Richard,_ " she chided in a harsh whisper. Well, as harshly as anyone could chide under these circumstances. She tugged at his hair, not out of pleasure this time. "Don't be so crude with my child."

He actually managed a tiny snort this time. They might not have been as attached to Richard as they were to Raven, but that was _his_ child, too. As if he wanted to prove a point, he picked up the pace.

A harsh breath forced itself out of her mouth. "B-baby, where's Mister Alfie? It's not like him to leave you alone like this."

 _"That's because I was with Grandpa Bruce. He wanted to spend time with me, but he just kept talking about how daddy made him old_ again _, so I just left. I don't think that he's noticed, yet."_

They both laughed, but the little giggle that escaped her reminded him a bit of the past and of everything that they were forced to endure before they finally made it all work out. It was a nice feeling, especially when one considered the circumstances that forced them together and threatened to separate them.

A sharp and sudden gasp cut her giggle short before it faded into a low moan, her fingers tugging and pulling at his hair again almost painfully as a series of incoherent mumblings began to spill out of her mouth.

Richard gave another groan into her neck. It just felt so incredibly _good_ to have her like this. She couldn't even speak properly anymore, and at this point, he didn't even _care_ if he got off anymore. Just as long as _she_ was satisfied, he was just fine.

A desperate whimper. " _Rich_ -!"

He immediately removed his face from its spot, captured her lips in a searing kiss and swallowed her cries down. As much as he liked to hear her like that, he liked having an _un_ -traumatized child much more. She gave into his lips with an enticing and appreciative moan that steadily crescendoed in his mouth as she hugged him close, her body jolting roughly against his own before she finally came hard.

Richard hugged her close in an attempt to help her come down from her high as gently as possible. With a soft mewl into his mouth, her body grew lax in his arms and their kiss grew soft, the hard passion of it all dissolving into something sweet as she rode out the last dregs of her orgasm. He placed one last kiss onto her lips and brushed her nose with his, eliciting a tiny whimper from her as he placed his forehead onto hers and allowed her shallow breaths to graze his lips.

"You're perfect, you know that?"

Raven tried to scoff, but it sounded like another quiet whimper in the midst of her shaking breaths. She shook her head, her forehead brushing his. "I love you."

"You love the sex."

"Don't be so spoiled. I love both."

Richard chuckled, and he just knew that she had that little smile on her face. "I love you, too."

"Mh," she hummed as her hands slid from his hair to his chest. She grabbed for the fabric of his shirt and reclined onto the door behind her with a soft sigh. "I know."

His smile grew and he finally opened his eyes to watch her. His wife was always such a _mess_ whenever she came, and this time wasn't any different. She looked absolutely spent as she reclined onto the door, her eyes shut and a look on her face that could only be described as _pure bliss._ Her hair was all over the place, one of the straps of her dress had snapped off and was currently dangling away, and there were various assortments of hickeys and love bites decorating her pale neck and heaving chest.

Bruce was _definitely_ going to question him on her appearance. And once again: _Richard didn't care_ , because as messy and disheveled as she looked, she was also absolutely stunning.

"You okay, mommy?"

Raven gave a tiny snort. Finally, she opened her eyes and rolled them off to the side in faux-disdain, although those beautifully swollen lips did seem to be growing into a lazy smile. She met his eyes with a breathy chuckle and nodded. "Yes, daddy."

As soon as those words left her mouth, that same primal part of him from earlier practically roared from deep within his core. She liked to acknowledge the fact that they were parents, _good_ ones after the hell that they had gone through to get to this point. Richard, however, just liked to hear her call him ' _daddy_ ', and judging from the dark mischief that always twinkled in those eyes of hers, she knew it very well.

A low and dangerous chuckle that sounded like fine velvet poured out of her mouth as she took his face into her hands, bringing him closer to herself as she kissed him long and hard. With an almost animalistic grunt, he pressed himself flush against her, pushing her against the door as he prepared to take her once again.

She took his bottom lip between her teeth and tugged before whispering a deep and husky, " _Yes, daddy_."

Richard reclaimed her lips with his own and began a sharp, deliberate pace inside of her, one that had her arching off of the door with a guttural cry into his mouth. She broke the kiss with a sigh full of ecstasy as she rested her head on the door once again. Her blunt nails were digging into his skin, but as long as he got to see her jaw falling slack and her lips making that ' _o_ ' shape again, he didn't care.

"I'm going to make you forget your name, Raven."

Raven gave a short moan and released his face, her hands drifting down to his chest as she gripped the front of his shirt. The last and only surviving strap to her dress slid down her shoulder, her breasts dancing to the beat of their movements as the corners of her mouth curved up in excitement.

"Baby?" she called out, her voice breathless as she tried to keep the pants that escaped her light. "Are you still out there?"

 _"Yes,"_ the child declared a bit impatiently. That part, everyone could agree came from _Richard's_ side of the family. _"Are you coming_ now _?"_

"She already did," Richard told his wife and her smile continued to grow. The sight of it made a grin crawl onto his own face. "And she's going to come again, and again, and _again_ -"

"Baby, go find Mister Alfie, okay?" Raven called out as she released the front of Richard's shirt to grab ahold of his face. She kissed his lips before throwing her head back with a harsh swear. "I-I want the both of you to stay far, far away from Grandpa Bruce. Mommy's busy in here, but I- Fu- Mmh-! I'll be right there!"

_"Okay, mommy!"_

The quick, little pitter-patter of tiny feet soon disappeared, and Richard arched a brow. "Right there?"

"Yes," she told him with a nod, her smile shifting and changing into that little ' _o_ ' again. " _R_ _ight there_ , daddy-"

Richard awoke with a sharp gasp, soon followed by a yelp. "I am _not_ your daddy!"

"Thank you for that update, Richard."

Before Richard could question just what the _hell_ his father was doing in his bedroom during such a traumatic moment that he admittedly would _much_ rather endure _alone,_ he popped an eye open, only to come to the harrowing discovery that his father wasn't in his bedroom. _Richard_ wasn't even in his bedroom. Instead, he was sitting at the long table of the Manor's meeting room with both of his arms up and beside his head as if he were defending himself against something.

 _"Probably against that dream,"_ the universe cooed almost prettily before disappearing with a witchy cackle.

Richard clenched his teeth, jutting his jaw just a bit as he opened his other eye. Speaking of that _dream_ , he could see from his peripheral vision that Raven was also sitting at the table with him and his father. Fortunately for him, she was sitting on the _other_ side, and he refused to look at her. With a brain like hers, she would probably figure out what was going on in his head with just one look into his guilty eyes.

"You can put your arms down now," she spoke.

_Jesus take the wheel._

Of course if he couldn't _look_ at her, he would _hear_ her voice. With a sigh, he set his arms down and onto the armrests on either side of the chair, knitting his brows in confusion as he watched his father. "What's going on?"

"We're helping your father with the ball since you got him into this mess," Raven declared, and although Richard was praying for Jesus to take the wheel just a few moments ago, he found himself giving in and looking at her. There was a bit of an amused look on her face and she was doing that weird, little _glowing_ trick again. He was about _this_ close to seriously inquiring into how she did that.

Her violet eyes widened as if she'd just remembered something, right before she jutted a thumb toward Bruce. "His words, not mine."

A laugh poured itself right out of his mouth and she tucked a stray hair that didn't make it into her bun behind her ear as she fought a smile. Now that he thought about it, her hair was always stuck in that bun, not that he minded. It was pretty cute. But really, the last time that he had ever seen her with her hair out was on that night that they had shared.

The universe cleared her throat before singing a pretty, _"Don't forget the dreeeeeam."_

Before the blush could properly spread across his face and he could get to asking Jesus to take the wheel again, Bruce shook his head and released a sigh. "Thank you, Raven."

Alfred's sudden and poorly concealed wheezes resounded from his spot at the doorway, and Raven ducked her head. "Master Grayson, you fell asleep while your father was speaking. We didn't want to wake you. We thought that it would be rather rude to do so."

"Thanks for letting me get a little nap." Yeah, _not_ really. "But can you blame me for falling asleep? He speaks with as much personality as a baked potato."

"Now, now, Master Grayson. Don't be so rash in insulting the potato family so harshly-"

"And _thank you_ , Alfred," Bruce interrupted.

Raven immediately clapped both of her hands flat over her face, her shoulders shaking and shuddering with quiet laughter.

Bruce ignored that. "As I was saying before someone decided that it was nap time, Gotham City's annual Holiday Ball is probably the most important event on this city's calendar. The most influential names and faces of Gotham, and outside of Gotham, gather here to celebrate both the holiday season and the upcoming year, and to end the current year off with a bang."

Ah. Now Richard remembered what was going on before he fell asleep. Apparently, because he, the son of one of Gotham's most influential, was going into his final year of schooling, the mayor was positive that if Richard made an appearance at the ball, then there would be a good turn out. And of course, because Bruce was going to be a grandfather soon (much to his dismay), he was forcing his son to attend.

Now, not only did his father really speak with as much personality and charisma as a baked potato, but Richard had just taken his first few classes of his final year just this morning, only to come back for this stupid meeting. It was quite understandable that he would fall asleep, and he was a bit surprised that he wasn't nodding off again, but it didn't make sense for him to have such a _bizarre_ dream. One that felt so _real_ -

"What do you want us to do?" Richard asked before his mind could delve any deeper.

Bruce's dark eyes actually _sparkled_ with a little semblance excitement. Richard's stomach turned because _those_ eyes weren't supposed to be sparkling with excitement, not even little bits or _semblances_ of excitement or anything else.

Very suddenly, Alfred dropped a large, heavy box onto the center of the table, a thundering thud accompanying its impact.

Raven finally slid her hands off of her face. She looked calm, but her face was flushed and eyes full of mirth, the telltale signs of laughter. She arched a brow as she observed the box. "That's a big box."

"Yes, it is." Bruce reclined into his seat. "That box is filled with invitations that you two are to sort through and organize by the end of next month."

Richard's face fell. "You _can't_ be serious."

Bruce's face _actually_ lit up. "I'm _completely_ serious."

Raven's face actually _scrunched_ up. Quite adorably, too. "Well, I'm... I'm _pregnant_. Don't _I_ get a pass from sorting through that gigantic box filled with the names and addresses of Gotham City's most spoiled and entitled?"

Before Bruce could say anything, Richard snorted. "Oh, no. If you can manage to lift all of those creations that you call _food_ up to your mouth back-to-back with ease, you can definitely sort through some invitations, Princess."

She set her jaw, rolling her tongue in her mouth before she finally admitted defeat. She crossed her arms and looked away, shaking her head with a harsh scoff. "I cannot _believe_ that I let myself get knocked up by Bruce Wayne's kid."

Bruce looked to Richard and raised a brow as if to say, " _I like this one_."

"And you," Raven began, her tone accusing and full of annoyance as she turned her attention over to Bruce. " _Master Brucie Bruce_. Is that why you told me to call a friend over to help us out? Because you knew that this _stupid_ box was going to be this big?"

Richard looked to Bruce, raising a brow as if to say, " _Well,_ is _it, Brucie Bruce_?!"

As Bruce visibly struggled for a proper response under the young woman's glare, Alfred busied himself with giggles that filled the air. Luckily enough for the patriarch of the Manor, the doorbell rang with a light and pretty jingle that managed to distract Raven just a bit.

She sat up in her seat. "That must be him."

A record scratch sounded off in Richard's head. _Him_? Who the fuck was ' _him_ '?

Alfred released a sigh and a few chuckles slipped out. "I'll go and fetch our visitor," he said before stepping out of the room.

Raven pushed her seat back and stood in preparation to follow after the old man, but not before turning back to Bruce. She pointed a finger, narrowing her eyes in accusation. "I'm not through with you." At that, she stepped out of the room and followed the path that Alfred had taken.

The room was silent as Bruce took a moment to collect himself. Then, a corner of his mouth turned up. "I _really_ like this one, kid."

With a groan, Richard pushed his seat back and stood. "I _know_ you _like this one._ You keep saying that like we're going to get _married_ or something."

Bruce opened his mouth.

"Don't ask."

At that, Richard stepped out, leaving his father alone in the meeting room as he followed after Raven. He had to see who this _'him_ ' was. Richard was just the father of Raven's child, and their relationship was nowhere near romantic, but he should have at least _some_ knowledge as to who this ' _him'_ character was.

When he reached her, he found her waiting for Alfred in the foyer, still looking quite a bit bothered.

In a sundress.

The universe choked out a wheeze that was followed by a titter.

It would have been worse if the sundress that she was wearing now actually resembled the one in his dream, but this one was longer, long enough to cover her toes. And it was white. This dress made her look like... It made her look like a _mom_ , and that fact made his stomach turn - not for any of the right reasons. It was... nice. _She_ looked nice.

Why was he _just_ now noticing that she was wearing _that_?

He raised a hand and scratched the back of his neck a bit nervously. Wait, why was he _nervous_? He cleared his throat and set his arm down, stretching it in a vain attempt to ease the nerves away. "Nice dress."

Raven snorted, a corner of her mouth curving up as she continued to wait. "Thanks. Dresses are all that really fit me properly right now. Your kid is starting to make me fat."

" _My_ kid," he laughed aloud, scandalized. "Of course this would be _my_ kid as soon as someone's gained some pregnancy weight."

A chuckled forced itself out of her mouth before she could stop it and she crossed her arms over her slightly bulging belly with a shake of her head. He found himself smiling at the sight. While it was true that she was getting fatter, it was also true that she was still just as cute. Maybe even cuter. Fat and pregnant was a pretty good look on her.

"You're pregnant, you're supposed to get fat." He ignored her scoff, shoving his hands into the pockets of his jeans as he took a step toward her. "Besides, even if you were fat and unpregnant, you'd still be pretty cute. And a lot squishier."

Her brows shifted a bit, right before she finally met his eyes. She looked absolutely unimpressed, giving him a look that was probably meant to distract him from the light rosiness that dusted her cheeks. " _Unpregnant_ isn't a word. And you can stop flirting. You already got me pregnant."

Speaking of flirting. "Who's this _'him_ ' character that you've invited into my home?"

Raven seemed a bit perturbed by the sudden change of subject before she scoffed, a bit of a smile playing at her lips. "Don't tell me you're jealous. Once again, _you_ got me pregnant. You kind of won this race, baby daddy."

There that name went again.

"Didn't I tell you not to call me that?"

"Fine. How about _daddy_?"

That primal part of him that was only supposed to exist in that stupid dream purred a bit from deep within his core, and he fisted his hands in his pockets. Hearing her say that in real life sounded _much_ better than it did in that dream, and he had half a mind to tell her that this little nickname was _perfectly_ fine.

"Presenting," Alfred declared as he finally stepped into the foyer. "Master Garfield Logan, Lord of All Things Tofu."

Oh, the universe was just having a _ball_ with Richard today, wasn't she?

As Raven looked away in expectancy, Richard ran a hand through his hair, tugging and pulling out a few strands. "Let me get this straight. Out of _all_ your lovely friends, you chose _Garfield_ to come help? Do you realize how much he hates me?"

She rolled her eyes with a scoff, shrugging his question off of her shoulders. "Don't be so spoiled. Garfield doesn't hate you."

Alfred interrupted their debate with a soft and polite, "Ah-hem."

As if that were his cue, Garfield stepped into the foyer behind Alfred, in all of his brazen Richard-hating glory. He crossed his arms and set his jaw. "You got knocked up by Señor Moneybags, Bruce Wayne's kid? Bratty McBratBrat the First, huh?"

Richard's jaw dropped.

Alfred snorted. Quite loudly.

" _Garfield_!" Raven gasped before releasing a sigh of exasperation as she approached her friend. "Don't be so rude," she chided as she took him by the arm, right before she shot Richard an apologetic look and began to lead Garfield away. "Come on. I'll... I'll show you around or something."

In a show that was obviously reluctant, Garfield allowed Raven to lead him away, but not before sending Richard one last glare. He placed an arm around Raven's shoulders and hugged her close. "Show me where the kitchen is. Whatever you're eating over here must be good if you've gained this much weight and your boobs are looking like that."

"Garfield."

"Don't take this the wrong way, but they're huge."

" _Gar_."

"Sorry. I meant _colossal._ Don't take this the wrong way, but your boobs are _colossal_ -"

" _Gar_!" she exclaimed as a laugh escaped her, their voices fading with each step they took. "Apparently, I'm _supposed_ to get fat. I'm _pregnant_."

Garfield's low chuckle rang a bit in the hallway they escaped into. "True, true. It looks good on you."

"The fat or the boobs?"

"All three."

A snort. "Thanks."

Alfred cleared his throat, drawing Richard's attention. "Master Grayson, I do hope that Miss Raven's other friends don't harbor such hatred for you. At least, not outwardly as Master Garfield Logan, Lord of All Things Tofu does. For your sake, of course."

Richard scoffed because Garfield was the _only_ one of Raven's that he knew who hated him so much. He crossed his arms. "How did he get you to call him that?"

"Why," Alfred began with a shrug. "I simply thought that the title was so catchy that I had to go along with it."

An easy smile slid onto Richard's face as Bruce stepped into the foyer, coming out of the same hallway that Raven and Garfield had just disappeared into. He looked back before turning to Alfred and Richard, jutting a thumb behind him. "Who's that kid, and why does he insist on calling me Señor Moneybags?"

"Sir," Alfred began slowly in an obvious attempt to take his boss seriously. This job had obviously gotten a bit harder to commit to ever since Raven had showed up. "That is Miss Raven's friend, Master Garfield Logan, Lord of All Things Tofu."

Bruce hesitated quite visibly, his brows shifting in confusion before he sighed in surrender. "Richard, go follow them. I trust Raven, but who can really trust anyone who believes that they're the lord of all things _tofu_ related?"

Richard's smile grew. "Raven trusts him."

Bruce shook his head, waggling the thumb still jutted out behind him. Raising his hands up in surrender, his son reluctantly followed the order. As Richard stepped out, the older man regarded Alfred. "How the hell did he get you to call him that?"

Alfred merely fixed his tie with a titter before following after Richard. "I finished my book this morning and there's nothing good on tv. Master Grayson and his new friends should be entertaining enough. Don't you think, sir?"

Bruce opened his mouth to speak. Then he shook his head, dismissing the entire previous conversation because _this_ was his life now. "Just tell me if Raven says anything funny."

"Of course, sir."

And at that, Bruce made his way to his office.


	7. Chapter 7

_Baby Daddy_ : Chapter Six

_**.** _

The tension that filled the air of the meeting room didn't feel quite as sticky or as palpable as such straining emotions usually felt. The atmosphere wasn't even nearly as thick or as uncomfortable as it should have been—not even close. In fact, this tension that was spreading throughout the room was actually being exuded with such ease and comfortability. It was almost as if it was... _wafting_ through the air, just floating along as if there was a soft and gentle breeze dancing with it and guiding it through the room. Almost as if it _belonged_ there.

This obviously wasn't right or _okay_ , at all.

An emotion like tension was never supposed to be released with such _leisure_ , and it definitely had no place feeling so easy and normal to the people that it was touching and brushing up against. With an emotion as harsh as _tension_ , there should never be any instance or circumstance for it to feel like it _belonged_ within the midst of people, as it did now. Yet this leisure that was easing tension into the room was accompanied by this strange sense of _normalcy_. Ultimately, the strangeness of it all was what clarified just why it felt so normal.

Garfield Logan, Lord of All Things Tofu, _hated_ Richard.

The young man's hatred for Richard was obvious. It had been both blatantly and painfully obvious since he had learned of Raven's pregnancy. Once Garfield found out, he quickly went from encouraging his friend to flirt with Richard to snubbing the older man every chance he got. It was clear that Raven was an important and dear friend to him, which explained his protective behavior and the deep hatred that he held for Richard.

Although they were close cousins, the word _hatred_ was quite different from the word _dislike_ , and Richard didn't need to be an English major to know that. _Dislike_ was like being forced to choose between a white chocolate bar, a milk chocolate bar, and a dark chocolate bar, only to end up choosing the milk chocolate bar because the bitterness of the dark chocolate and the extra sweetness of the white chocolate made the teeth all the way in the back of your mouth ache and throb. Milk chocolate was in the middle, and it was just right—the perfect balance between the three choices. But _hatred_? There was no picking and choosing with hatred. There was no best or worst choice with hatred, because the best choice was automatically the one which catered to one's hedonistic tastes. Hatred was strong, direct, and involved no deliberation—there was no balance.

Once again, Richard didn't need to be an English major to know the difference.

_"To hate is to kill a brother,"_ Bruce always told him.

And Garfield. _Hated_. Richard.

At the moment, both Richard and Garfield, along with Raven, were sorting through that big box of invitations. Admittedly enough? This almost _languid_ projection of hatred and tension allowed them to work through their task quite (and comically) easily. It wasn't distracting, not at all. In fact, it set a catchy, little beat and rhythm that went _perfectly_ with the nasty comments that they spat out and their petty arguments over the pronunciation of last names. But it distracted Raven, and if the pregnant woman wasn't happy, no one else would be either. As a result, ground rules had been implemented—both swiftly and accordingly.

"Let's just be cordial, okay? Neither of you say anything to each other, not _one_ _word_. If either of you just _has_ to say something to the other, just tell me. I'll pass the message on. Got it?"

Alfred, who stood at the door as their supervisor, thought that the idea was _absolutely brilliant_.

"Brilliant," the old man commended her with an approving nod. "Abso- _lutely_ brilliant."

(Then again, he thought that _everything_ she said was brilliant.)

Garfield simply scoffed and plucked an invitation from the pile that sat in front of him, muttering a short comment about how much of a _mom_ she was already beginning to sound like. He checked a name off of his clipboard and placed the invitation into a neat stack, the 'confirmed', meeting Raven's eyes as he did so. "Fine. Raven, may you please tell the father of your child that I _really_ don't like him, and that his hair is stupid?"

Richard reclined into his chair, rolling his eyes up to the ceiling at the sound of Alfred's titter. The old man immediately cut it short before clearing his throat.

Raven gave a short gasp, looking between Garfield and Richard in disbelief. Finally, she glared at Garfield. "That is _not_ why I made that rule, Garfield, and you _know_ it-!"

"Ah-ah- _ah_!" Garfield chimed a bit _too_ happily, waggling a single finger in the air as he sang his little song. "I'm following _your_ rules. Plus, I said ' _may_ '. You _have_ to do it now."

Raven rolled her tongue around in her mouth, and it was clear that she was biting back a few very _choice_ words. Finally, she admitted defeat. She released a sharp breath through her nostrils, dangerously narrowing her eyes at her friend before she looked to Richard. "Baby daddy-"

Richard didn't even look at her. He chose to keep his eyes glued to the ceiling. "You have _got_ to be kidding me right now, Rae."

Before she could stop it, a chuckle slipped out of her mouth.

"Rae?" Garfield asked. "Her name isn't ' _Rae_ ', it's _Raven_."

She snorted quietly. "Don't be silly, Gar. 'Rae' is a nickname. All my friends call me that."

Richard's brow jumped in time with Garfield's scandalized squeak. It wasn't that Richard didn't think of Raven as a friend. Honestly, as soon as he had invited her to live with him, he was pretty much forced to consider her as less of a housemate and more of a friend. He just didn't think that _she_ considered _him_ as a friend, because up until this point he had been pretty sure that she'd resigned herself to referring to him as 'the spoiled brat son of Bruce Wayne who had knocked her up'. Or just plain, old _baby daddy_. It felt pretty good to know that she considered him to be a little more than just that.

" _Friend_?!" Garfield continued, his tone a bit heated and agitated. "You shouldn't consider the person who ruined your life a _friend_ , Rae!"

"Garfield, that's enough!"

A twinge of guilt jabbed the very center of Richard's stomach with a hot and uncomfortable heat. He said that like Richard didn't know it. Richard ruined her life by getting her pregnant— _he knew it well_ , trust and believe. If Richard had just stayed away from the hot barista, she would have never gotten kicked out of her house, and he wouldn't have been getting berated by some overprotective, tofu loving freak.

With a low groan, Richard finally tore his eyes from the ceiling and rubbed over his eyes with the flat of his palms. " _Rae_ ," he started as he took up one of his invitations. "May you please ask Garfield if he is able to stop acting like a _child_ long enough to get through his share of invites?"

A tiny frown touched Raven's mouth. Before she could even speak, Garfield stood with another scandalized squeal (Richard was quickly learning that Garfield did this a lot), slamming his hands flat onto the table. "Dude, what the hell?! I'm _not_ a child!"

Richard was immediately on his feet. "Are you _seriously_ mad about that?!"

"I'm sure as hell not happy enough to star in an episode of _Barney_ and his motherfucking friends!"

"What is that even supposed to mean?! You just said that I ruined Raven's life, but you're mad because I called you a _kid_?!"

"That's because I told the truth: you _did_ ruin her life!"

"And you're an annoying _kid_!"

It was quite obvious by now that this ( _absolutely_!) brilliant, little idea of Raven's was already backfiring and falling apart before it even had a chance to begin. She released a short sigh, looking to Alfred for some sort of solace. "Al, would you mind helping me sort through these invitations? I'd really appreciate it."

Alfred looked to the two men, watching as they continued to argue, both of them oblivious to the disapproving glares that they were receiving. With a shake of his head, the old man abandoned his post at the door and walked over to the table to take a seat beside Raven. "You really did try, Miss Raven."

A corner of Raven's mouth rose, a soft chuckle escaping her as she rose a hand to tuck a stray hair behind her ear. "'It is common sense to take a method and try it. If it fails, admit it frankly and try another.'"

"'But above all, try something'," Alfred finished for her, tiny smile lighting his face up. "Franklin Delano Roosevelt. You know," he said before a rather uncharacteristic snort forced itself out of his mouth. "You're _much_ too brilliant to be carrying Master Grayson's child."

As if that were his cue, Richard growled. "You vegan, tofu loving _freak_! If you can't _take_ it, then don't _dish_ it out!"

Raven ignored that, choosing instead to shuffle through the pile of invitations that sat in front her. She frowned. "I'm not brilliant enough to sort through all of these invitations without any help or losing my mind."

"Ah. That is why _I_ am here, remember?" Alfred reached over, taking about half of her pile and sliding the invitations over to his side of the table. "The key," he began as he counted the number of invitations in his stack before dividing them into five separate groups. "Is to make sure that you _do not_ allow yourself to get overwhelmed."

"I think that I was doing fairly well before those two exploded," she muttered before nodding toward the stacks he had separated. "Divide and conquer."

"Indeed. Divide and conquer," Alfred confirmed with a nod of his own before he began to work on the invitation that sat right on top of the first stack. He picked up a pen and checked a name off of the list before pointing it at her. "Remember: brilliance never exempts anyone from needing help, young one."

Raven smiled as she divided her pile of invitations into five stacks of her own. "I know. That's why I asked you."

At that, the two went ahead with their work in peace.

Well, in as much peace as anyone could manage with Richard and Garfield's incessant arguing.

"Ugh, I cannot _believe_ that you're having _this_ guy's baby, Raven!"

Richard set his jaw, the anger flaring from deep within his belly at the sight of Garfield's face.

Without one doubt in his mind, Garfield Logan was the pettiest and most annoying human being that Richard had ever had the misfortune to come across. And this certainly was saying a lot. He was Bruce Wayne's kid, meaning that he had met a lot of people growing up and would continue to meet new people. He had met rude, obnoxious, and just flat-out disrespectful people. But none could or would ever compare to _Garfield Logan_ —he took the cake, frosting and all. Because of the simple fact that this was Raven's friend, Richard was forced to put up with him. Although, this didn't mean that Richard was the allowed to make an attempt at beating the kid at his own game.

"Oh, would you rather it be _you_?!"

Garfield hesitated for a bit, his cheeks flushing with a rosy tint before he set his jaw. " _Anyone_ would be better than some spoiled and bratty pretty boy!"

"You're one to talk, _kid_!"

"I thought I told you _not_ to call me that!"

"Why the _fuck_ are my parents being invited to this shit-fest of a ball?"

All of the arguing came to an immediate halt, just as Alfred began to choke on the air, and it wasn't because he was fighting the laughter this time. Richard and Garfield looked to Raven, only to find her holding an invitation with a shaking hand. The very tips of her fingers were stark white and her face, red. It was a bit unnerving to see someone with such pale skin looking _that_ red— _dark_ red—as if she was holding her breath and struggling to breathe at the same time.

"Is anyone going to answer me?" she asked, her voice trembling _just_ a bit before she set her lips into a tight, fine line.

Richard's stomach turned a bit in discomfort. Whether she was the mother of his child or not, he didn't like to see her like this. He didn't want to see _anyone_ like that. He glanced at Garfield, quite delighted to discover that he felt the same. "What do you mean? Your parents can't be invited."

Raven took in one, deep sigh before she cleared her throat. "'Trigon Roth, you are cordially invited to Gotham City's 10th Annual Holiday Ball'. This was mailed to my house– my _previous_ house address." She pursed her lips and held the invitation out for him to take.

Garfield crossed his arms with a scoff. "Told you this guy was bad news."

Richard ignored that in favor of reaching for the invitation that Raven held out. He read the invitation carefully, searching for any clues that would reveal just _why_ her parents would be invited to this thing.

"Scath Enterprises," Alfred declared rather suddenly with a snap of his fingers, drawing everyone's attention. "Trigon Roth isn't an exactly uncommon name in Gotham, and there is a _Trigon Roth_ who is the head of Scath Enterprises."

"That's my father."

Both Alfred and Richard looked to her. _She_ was the heir to Scath Enterprises? _Raven_ , the hot barista from Jump who reminded him of Gotham? The mother of his kid? Richard's stomach turned with some sort of _strange_ discomfort. This could only mean one thing: if he had never gotten her pregnant at the beginning of the summer, they were bound to meet sometime later, anyhow. It was _definitely_ probable that they would have met at this very ball that they were helping to organize. And _then_ he would have gotten her pregnant.

The universe cackled. _"Fate and destiny are such_ fun _! Aren't they, Richie Rich?!"_

" _You're_ the heir to Scath?" he blurted out.

"I _was_ ," Raven admitted, prompting the room to grow quiet as the three men watched her expectedly. She shifted uncomfortably in her seat for a moment before she finally released an agitated groan. "Okay, _fine_. When it came time for me to go to college, my father had already begun grooming me to take over Scath. The plan was for me to major in Business during the week and to train with an internship at his business on the weekends. This way, I would be able to slip right into a leadership position at the main office as soon as I graduated. But I went against his wishes and majored in Education instead. He... didn't like that very much."

"Why didn't you leave?" Garfield asked, a deep frown marring his face. "Was there nowhere else for you to go?"

"I was _going_ to leave with the money that I had saved up once I graduated." Raven shrugged. "I started college when I was seventeen, meaning that I was still a minor at the time and that his name was still on the account. As soon as I declared my major, he took my name off of the account and locked me out to force me to stay and begin my training at the business. By the time I realized this, I was nineteen, graduated, and it was already too late. I had to start fresh, which is why I'm working at the café."

"I..." Garfield began. He was obviously at a loss for words, one thing that Richard never thought that the young man could _ever_ become. "I didn't know, Rae. I'm sorry."

Raven pursed her lips, hesitating a bit. "I didn't tell anyone down at the café, not even Terra. It's not that I don't trust you all, but you guys were my home away from home, and I didn't want anything from my home life getting mixed up with you guys."

"That invitation won't be sent," both Richard and Garfield declared together. They looked to each other, surprise lining their faces before they both shuddered in disgust and took one step away from one another.

Raven snorted, bracing her elbow onto the chair's armrest before she rested her chin on her palm. "You can't just _not_ invite my parents."

Garfield scoffed, his face shifting with confusion. "We can _totally_ not invite them. All we have to do is _not_ mail the invitation to their house."

"No." Raven chuckled a bit, a small smile tugging at the corners of her lips. It was much nicer to see her like this. "You literally can't. _You're_ not hosting the ball—none of us are. Bruce Wayne and the mayor of Gotham City is."

Richard raised one shoulder, allowing it to drop as his brows jumped. "I'm sure my father won't mind taking them off of the list."

Her smile grew, right before she shook her head. She ran a hand down the length of her face in an attempt to wipe the growing smile off. "Richard, don't be so spoiled."

Alfred coughed behind a fist.

"I'll have to face them sometime," she continued, waving a hand in the air as she thought. "What if I'm... _grocery shopping_ or something and I see them in the produce aisle?"

"We go into the dairy aisle," Alfred resolved, drawing comments of agreement from the other men.

" _Alfred_!" she gasped in incredulity, a bit of a laugh escaping her. She looked to Richard, arching a brow. "The mayor of Gotham City is inviting both Trigon Roth and his wife."

_Sheesh_ , Richard thought as he raised a hand to rub at the back of his neck. The universe couldn't have _possibly_ chosen a stronger woman to have his kid. He let his arm fall to his side with a heavy sigh, shoving his hand into the pocket of his jeans. "Fine, the mayor of Gotham City is inviting both Trigon Roth and his wife. The invitation will be sent. But don't worry, I won't let you face them alone if you see them at the ball."

She tried to fight it, but there was a genuine smile forcing its way onto her face. "Thanks."

"Ah- _hem_!" Garfield declared, waving his arms into the air as he fought for their attention. "You mean ' _we_ '! _We_ won't let her face them alone if she sees them at the ball. Mail an invitation over to my place, pretty boy."

Richard scoffed, looking away with annoyance. "I think you'd fit in much more properly with the help, _Gar_."

" _Dude_ , what the _hell_?! I'm not your friend, so _don't_ call me 'Gar'!"

"Well, don't call me 'pretty boy', _kid_!"

With a shake of his head, Alfred took his pen and checked the name 'Roth' off of his list. He took up another invitation. "I think that it would do us some good to resume sorting through these invitations, don't you?"

Raven nodded, picking up an invitation from her own stack. "Especially when those two idiots refuse to stay focused long enough without one argument."

A soft chuckle of contentment slipped past Alfred's lips. "And don't worry, Miss Raven. None of us will allow you to face this task alone. You're in good hands."

She looked to Alfred, only to see the old man breezing through his stacks of invites. A tiny smile spread across her face and she nodded, picking up her pen to check a name off of her list before she picked up another invitation. "I know. Thank you."

"You're quite welcome."

_**.** _

By the end of the night, about half of that huge box of invitations had been sorted through. Both Richard and Garfield were man enough to admit that just a _tad_ bit more would have been finished just a _tad_ bit sooner had they both simply swallowed their pride. As such, this experience (along with the little paper cuts it had blessed them with) forced them to reach an ultimatum: no more arguments around the invitations.

"I'm still gonna call you 'pretty boy'," Garfield admitted from his spot at the front door. He arched a brow. "Pretty boy."

Richard resisted the urge to just shut the door in his face. He crossed his arms and reclined against the door post. "I guessed that much, kid."

Before Garfield could say anything, because words just seemed to pour out of his mouth (another thing that he couldn't help doing), Raven took a step toward him. "Thanks for coming over to help, Gar. I really appreciate it."

"Oh." He shrugged, shaking his head with a wave of his hand. "It's no big deal. But I..." He scratched at his scalp a bit sheepishly, his mouth turning down and into a frown. "I really am sorry about your dad, Rae. If I had known-"

"It wouldn't have made a difference. Honest, it wouldn't. It's not your fault that my father is the devil." She laced her fingers at her back with a nod. "No more secrets."

"I'm not the one who likes to live in the shadows, Rae-Rae." With that being said, Garfield leaned down to place a single kiss into her hair before walking off. He waved a hand in the air as he called out, "I better get my invitation in the mail within three to five business days."

Raven shut the door with a frown, hesitating just a bit before she released the handle and looked to Richard. Her brows knitted in suspicion. "I'm not secretive... am I?"

"You're not exactly an open book, Rae."

She rolled her eyes and began to make her way through the foyer and to the grand staircase. She ignored his laughter. "Sorry about Garfield. He's just very... _very_ overprotective."

That was definitely the wrong word. _Territorial_ seemed much more fitting. Richard watched as she walked, a slight smile crawling onto his face once she finally reached the bottom of the stairs. Quite honestly, it never did make any sense for the main staircase to be so far away from everything around it. It made even less sense now that they had a pregnant woman living with them. But he did have to admit that seeing her bare feet shuffling from underneath that sundress of hers was _pretty_ adorable. "If I had known that I would be stepping into someone else's territory, I probably would have never approached you that night."

Raven snorted, stopping her trek up the stairs at his words (although, he had a sneaking suspicion that it was more so because she was already getting tired). She crossed her arms, bracing them onto the railing as she looked down at him with a look of faux disdain. The sight of that made his smile grow as he craned his neck to look up at her. "Of course it's a ' _probably_ '. And for your information, I'm no one's territory."

"Raven, you're carrying my _baby_. How much more of my territory could you possibly be?"

She rolled her eyes with a pursing of her lips, a clear indicator that she was fighting a smile or a laugh. "'It is very unnerving to be proven wrong, particularly when you are really right and the person who is really wrong is proving you wrong and proving himself, wrongly, right.'"

There she went again, just spitting quotes out like it was normal. "Lemony Snicket."

"Ah." Her brows jumped in shock. She pushed herself off of the railing, reaching down to hold up the hem of her dress before she took two steps up the stairs. "So, you _do_ have something in that spoiled head of yours."

He chuckled, shifting a bit against the doorpost. "I was forced to read it in the eighth grade."

Her smile grew impish. She took one more step. "Garfield is gay. Terra's his mustache since he hasn't come out to his parents yet, although I'm _pretty_ sure that they know. They got him a bright green birthday cake with rainbow filling last year."

"Am I not his type or something?"

"You heard him: you're too pretty." A pause. "So you don't have to be jealous."

" _Jealous_? _Me_?" He scoffed. "I'm not jealous." Not jealous enough for it to be obvious. That was what _he_ thought, at least.

Raven snorted, raising the rest of her dress' hem with her free hand. She resumed making her way up the stairs. "Good night, Richard."

An easy laugh escaped Richard's lips as he watched her turn the corner that led to her bedroom. He pushed himself off of the doorpost, shoving his hands into his pockets as he strolled out of the foyer and into the hallway that led to his father's office. He knocked on the door once.

"Come in."

Richard carefully opened the door, peaking his head in to see his father leaned over his desk and scribbling onto several sheets of paperwork. He stepped in, closing the door behind him as quietly as he could before he took a seat in front of the desk.

A moment passed, the quietness of the room being filled with the sounds of Bruce's page turning and the scribbles of his pen. He hesitated a bit. "I didn't know that Raven's father was the head of Scath Enterprises. I just got the list of invitees, I'm not in charge of _who_ gets invited. The mayor is. I was just charged with hosting and sending the invitations out. When Raven told me that her father was Trigon Roth, I didn't think that she was talking about _that_ Trigon Roth. Believe it or not, Trigon Roth is a pretty common name here, in Gotham."

Richard nodded. He definitely believed that. He loved Gotham, but it was a strange city filled with strange people and names. "Alfred told us."

"I just didn't know that she was _Trigon's_ kid," Bruce continued with a scoff. "I never would have even guessed it. She's way too smart to have come from _him_. People call him 'the devil'."

Richard frowned a bit. " _She_ called him that earlier."

"Hm. I feel pretty bad for her. I didn't even know that Trigon _had_ a kid."

There was a pause as a record scratch seemed to sound off in Bruce's head.

"Wait, Richard, you..." He glanced up at his son with a bit of an amused look, which was saying something. His face never seemed to change. " _You_ impregnated the devil's _daughter_." With a shake of his head, he reached over for his planner and immediately began jotting down little notes. "Tell... Clark... That Dick... Knocked... Devil's... Daughter... _Up_." He underlined the last word several times.

Richard's face fell. " _Dad_! You can't be serious, it isn't like I _planned_ this! You saw her, she's got Gotham all over her!"

A snort escaped Bruce as he set his pen down. He sat up in his seat with a tired groan, crossing his arms over his chest and quietly observing his son. "Alfred really likes this one."

"Tell me something I don't know." Richard rolled his eyes, looking away to study the architectural detail of the room that he should have already memorized. "He thinks that every word that comes out of her mouth is abso- _lutely_ brilliant."

"Well, he's right about that." Bruce smirked when his son hummed in agreement. "I like her, too."

"Once again, dad, tell me something I _don't_ know."

"Do _you_ like her?"

Richard didn't want to verbalize the fact that he liked her enough to put a baby inside of her. So, he stood and made his way for the door. "I'm sleepy. Good night."

His father simply chuckled, calling out a warning, "This one's a good one, kid."

" _Good. Night_."

 


	8. Chapter 8

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hello all! I'm so sorry to announce this after an impromptu hiatus, but unfortunately, I've lost every bit of inspiration I once possessed for this story. I can't say that I won't be updating ever again, but at the moment, it really seems unlikely. I'm so sorry to everyone who was into this story!

_Baby Daddy_ : Chapter Seven

**_._ **

School had never been very difficult for Richard. It was absolutely true that he abhorred waking up early in the morning—five _consecutive_ days for twelve years, mind you—only to be transferred to another building where he would be forced to learn about, literally, every single thing he couldn't possibly care less about. But what student _didn't_ feel this way about school? Regardless of this, he couldn't deny that there was nothing inherently evil about school, and there had never been (not _necessarily_ , anyway). After all, he had met his closest friends at school when he was younger, and this was excluding the children of his father's colleagues.

Even Bruce, along with Richard's friends, had played a pivotal role in his son's almost dismissive attitude toward school. About two weeks after he had officially been adopted, Bruce had already begun training and grooming his son to take over the business, and Richard never minded. How could he mind when there were billions of dollars to be made—in _his_ name? As such, the best tutors had been recruited, which really was a waste of Richard's time and Bruce's money because the boy refused to pay attention.

He could just imagine Raven's scoff, right before she rolled her eyes and declared an almost smug: "Bruce Wayne's kid. Should I be surprised?"

Alfred would giggle, right before he ran off to tell Bruce all about how funny and _brilliant_ Miss Raven was.

But Richard had digressed from the point, the point being that school had never been very difficult for him. It never had been. Simple as that—until now, that is, and this was all because it was a boy.

Wait, no, not 'it'. _It_ wasn't a boy; the kid was a boy—Richard's kid.

The moment that Richard had been informed of his impending fatherhood was, without one doubt, _the_ most disconcerting moment of his life. He hadn't even been given the courtesy of having the mere concept of him impregnating a random woman properly broken down and explained. Raven literally _blurted_ the news of her pregnancy out, said something incredibly snarky, and walked away—and this was all after _he_ had chased her down. He had been given no time to react, but now?

Now was where everything came to surface.

This time around, both Richard and Raven had been called back to the doctor's office just this morning. He stood beside her as she sat on that little hospital bed, the same and exact way they both set themselves up the first time they visited. Together, they waited for someone ( _anyone_ , really) to tell them why they had been called to the office so suddenly—in other words, plenty of time for both of them to make an attempt to get comfortable and prepare themselves to react to any news. In fact, once he finally arrived, Doctor Stone encouraged them both to relax and get comfortable, right before he happily declared that they would be having a boy.

A son.

"We've got a _one hundred percent_ baby, folks!" the doctor exclaimed as he checked something off on his clipboard.

As the doctor engaged an obviously unsettled Raven in conversation, Richard took the moment to finally take it all in properly. He hadn't been given the chance to do this last time—not properly. It had all been thrown at him last time, and he had been forced to swallow it all down in one sitting. Yet even with this opportunity of analysis sitting in his lap, he wasn't quite sure how to go about taking it all in. At least with a pregnancy, he could ruminate on it just a bit, because it was just that—a pregnancy.

But it was real this time— _he_ was real this time. Richard's kid was real, and he was going to be meeting him in six months.

The ride back to the Manor was a quiet one for both Richard and Raven, and this was completely understood from both ends. It wasn't like they were newlyweds who had gotten too excited on the first night of their honeymoon and gotten pregnant. It also wasn't like they were a couple who had been waiting desperately to finally conceive their first child. Hell, they weren't even a _real_ couple; this entire situation was a result of a one night stand gone completely wrong, and they were getting a new baby boy out of it.

As stated before, school had never been very difficult for Richard. He wasn't too proud to admit that he wasn't as smart as others were, but even he could see how simple the education system was: stay out of trouble, pass the tests, and do the homework. _Easy_. But today, as he sat in his Greek and Roman Mythology class, he couldn't even pick his pen up to jot down one word into his notebook. All he could think about was how quickly Raven rushed to her bedroom the moment they arrived to the Manor, muttering something about having to prepare for work or she would be late. That, and the fact that he was going to be holding a brand new baby boy in his hands in just a few months.

His feelings about all of this?

He was terrified.

The Universe snorted. _"That's how you welcome your own flesh and blood into me, daddy-o? Lucky kid!"_

"Earth to Grayson."

The sound of Jason's voice was enough to pull Richard out of his thoughts, forcing him to sit up and take in his surroundings. The classroom was completely empty, save for the two of them; the teacher wasn't even there anymore. Richard had actually managed to _literally_ sit through a class without doing shit—and he was sure his grades would suffer if he didn't shape up soon.

" _Richard_."

Richard started at the sound of his name, and he finally turned to look at Jason. The young man had his arms crossed and a slight look of disdain on his face, a clear indicator that he had been attempting to catch his friend's attention for quite a while now.

"What the hell is your problem?" Jason continued, his eyes narrowing in suspicion. There was just a hint of worry lining his face, although he was doing a pretty good job of masking it with his agitation. He held three fingers up, lowering each one when his point was spoken. "First, you got here late—something that you haven't done since, like, Brucie Bruce lectured your ass off the last time you did that in the seventh grade. Then, you just sit through the class, ignoring the professor whenever they said anything to you." His free hand extended outwards, as if he was presenting something to Richard. "And now, you're just _sitting_ here, looking like a pretty statue. You've been acting off since you got here, and this is only your first class of the day–"

"I'm having a son."

Jason's mouth fell open, rendering him speechless. For once in his noisy and talkative life, he was actually dumbstruck. The two friends watched each other in the silence of the classroom before Jason took in a sharp breath and spoke.

"Shit."

"I know."

"This is real now."

Richard nodded, an almost incredulous scoff escaping him as his friend joined him on this new and scary awakening. "I know."

"No." Jason uncrossed his arms with an almost childish huff before he began to pace back and forth. "No, I don't think you understand how _real_ this shit just got, Grayson–"

"This is _my_ son we're freaking out over, so I'm pretty sure I _do_ know how real."

With another short huff, Jason stopped pacing and looked to his friend. The disdain and agitation previously lining his face was no longer there. Instead, there was nothing but a slight concern, and the solemn expression made Richard's stomach turn in discomfort. He wasn't used to seeing such a serious look on his friend's normally goofy face.

"Richard," Jason began, and Richard knew that he had been right to worry. His full name never left Jason's mouth. In fact, it didn't even seem like it was in his vocabulary; it was always _Richie Rich_ , or even more recently, _Papa Bear_. Jason continued speaking, chuckling with incredulity. "You're about to be a father—to a real kid, mind you. This isn't pretend, or a bag of flour, or a little doll. This is a tiny human. A _baby_. So… congrats, Papa Bear."

Honestly, Jason's kind words did nothing to ease Richard's distress, even if he did add that little nickname at the end. His little speech actually made things just a bit worse, and it was all because he was absolutely correct. This child—Richard's son—literally was a tiny human being, just as Jason had pointed out. This little human would sleep all day and stay up all night; they would poop, and pee, and vomit whenever and wherever they possibly could, right before they fell asleep and woke up in the middle of the night to repeat the process. But then, they would age just a bit, and it would be just enough aging for them to finally be able to project their little personality right out of their little body all by themselves.

Richard braced his elbows against the desk and smacked his hands over his face. "Raven hates me."

Jason whistled, a low chuckle following. "I haven't seen _her_ in a while–"

"She's pregnant with my _son_ , Jason."

Jason laughed again, this one a bit more comforting and lot less lewd than the last. "Fine, fine. How does she hate you? I thought that you two were getting along pretty well."

"We were," Richard began before he stopped to think. He slid his hands off of his face and crossed his arms over his chest, leaning back into his seat with a groan before he corrected himself. "I mean, we _are_. I think. You know what? 'Hate' wasn't the right word. It's just that... As soon as we got back to the Manor from the doctor's office, she was already rushing to her room. I hadn't even parked the car yet, and she had one foot out the door! Literally, Jason, _her entire calf was hanging outside of the car_ while I was in the process of parking. She could have lost the lower-half of her leg, but she obviously cared _way_ more about getting away from me than she did about injuring herself."

Although Jason snorted, his upper lips quivered ever so slightly. "Can you really blame her? You put a kid inside her and ruined her life. But I'd be glad to take her off of your hands–"

"Jason, _come on_."

Jason doubled over, arms wrapped around his stomach as a long, wheezing laugh shook from him. He stomped a foot, and the echoes that reverberated off of the walls of the empty classroom made his friend flinch.

"I'm sorry," Jason's voice trembled as he shook his head. "But it is _way_ too funny seeing you like this. I almost never get to see you so _damn_ stressed! _Honestly_ , the fact that it's a random girl from _Jump_ who you somehow managed to impregnate that's getting you worked up like this makes it all so much better. I mean, she isn't even from Gotham, Richie Rich! Did your taste in women shift over the summer or something?"

"Hey, her mother is from Gotham."

"Like _that_ counts for anything!"

Richard set his jaw. Although he completely agreed that it was very strange for him to be so drawn to a woman who came from outside of Gotham, he opened his mouth to make an attempt (a vain one) at defending himself. But Jason's laughter continued to rise in pitch, higher and higher until the air was filled with his little wheezes and foot stomping. It reminded Richard of Alfred, and for this, both corners of his mouth fought to curve up. Jason had said and done absolutely nothing to help Richard solve his problem; he laughed straight into Richard's face and blatantly made fun of him. But Richard did have to admit that he felt a little better.

When Jason was forced to brace his hands against his knees in order to keep himself upright, Richard pressed his tongue against the roof of his mouth to keep the chuckle at bay.

"She was the heir to Scath," he commented.

Another long wheeze escaped Jason, a sound that became a heinous giggle as he stomped a foot twice. "You–! Richie, _you_ –! Got the devil's daughter–! I didn't even know he _had_ –! Oh, you gotta be–! Dude, you get to have _all_ the fun!"

The laughter that Richard had been holding back finally forced itself out, mostly because this whole thing _was_ pretty ridiculous. The situation in general was nowhere near fun, but throw in a new baby and a mother that hated Richard and you've got yourself a carnival in hell. Before he could remind Jason of these two key factors, the sharp clicks of heels took hold of his focus.

The door to the classroom opened and a middle-aged woman stepped inside. She glanced to them, offering a short and curt greeting before making a beeline for the large desk at the front of the room. Richard took the distraction that came with her presence; he blankly stared, watching as her bag was set on top of the desk and her blazer was shrugged off, the jacket draped over the back of the seat. With a short sigh, she rubbed her forehead with the back of her wrist and opened one of the desk drawers, taking out a marker before she turned to face the board hanging behind her.

With the uncapped marker halfway to the board, she suddenly stopped. She hesitated, turned, and looked to Jason, who was still laughing up a storm. She watched him for a moment before nodding, and it was clear that she had already deduced for herself that _this_ student wouldn't be the one to give her the answers she needed.

"Are you two in this class?" she asked Richard, her brow arching higher with each passing second as she periodically glanced at Jason . When Jason stomped a foot to emphasize his laughter, she jumped in shock. Her lips tried to twitch into a polite smile. "I'm sure that I would remember if he– I mean, _you two_ were in my class."

Right then and there, it hit Richard that this woman was the professor of the next class. He offered her a polite grin as he stood and gathered his belongings. "Sorry, Professor. We'll be leaving–"

Jason guffawed and stood up straight look over his shoulder, his eyes wide and his hands crowded near his chest as he spun around to face her. "Holy– Professor, I don't know you, but you have _got_ to know that _he's_ "–He hooked a thumb over his shoulder, pointing back at Richard with a snort–"having a _kid_ and the mom hates his _guts_ for putting the little devil inside her!"

The professor's mouth fell open.

Richard took that as his cue to grab Jason by the fabric of his shirt and drag his giggly ass out of the classroom. He could feel the professor's eyes on his back, and hunched his back a little as he made his quick escape.

"C-Congratulations!" the professor called out after another blatant moment of hesitation.

Another reluctant laugh escaped Richard as he led his friend down a corridor. He couldn't honestly be mad or frustrated at Jason; the guy came out of the womb with an ass complex. It was something Richard had known ever since they were young, and this quick remembrance took him back a few years. In the midst of being forced to grow up a lot quicker than expected, it felt pretty good to indulge himself in something as childish as reluctant amusement.

"I can tell you this much, Richie Rich," Jason began as he slowly sobered up, little giggles slipping out of short breaths. "I call dibs on being the Godfather."

"I'm sure that neither Raven nor I would really appreciate your influence over our son," Richard said, and his stomach immediately constricted at the reference to their child. He swallowed and finally released his hold on Jason's shirt, choosing instead to shove his hands into the pockets of his jeans.

Jason made a sound of agreement. He knew his friend was right. "And Richie Rich?"

"Yeah?"

"Talk to her."

Richard almost laughed. It was pretty easy for that phrase to come out of that mouth. He shrugged as they continued to walk beside each other. "Yeah."

Jason chuckled. " _Shit_."

"I _know_ , I know."

_**.** _

Richard had never been so jittery. As he sat at the kitchen counter of his home, one of his legs was bouncing up and down, his fingertips were dancing restlessly atop the counter, and his stomach was ready to turn itself inside out. There was a strange mixture of agitation, nervousness, and fear joining together in the very pit of his stomach—he could _feel_ these three emotions melting and churning in his gut, creating one deadly concoction of a super-emotion, and this was all because he had decided to follow Jason's advice:

He was going to speak with Raven.

Just for clarification purposes, Richard wasn't afraid of Raven. Honestly, he wasn't. However, _currently_ , he was feeling just a _bit_ apprehensive about approaching her. He had to admit that this was a little embarrassing to consider and come to terms with, but how could he not feel this way? The last time he had seen her, she was practically running away from him because she had been informed that she would be giving birth to his son.

 _His son_.

 _"Better start thinking up some baby names,"_ The Universe teased before cackling. _"Papa Bear..."_

Richard's fingertips immediately stopped their restless tapping. His hands jumped off of the counter—almost of their own accord—and slapped themselves over his face as a short groan escaped him.

"Ah. There you are, Master Grayson."

Richard jumped at the sound of Alfred's voice, his hands coming to rest on the counter again. He shifted a bit in his seat, trying to act normal, trying to act natural, as he twisted his upper-body around, enough to see the old man entering the kitchen.

"Alfred," Richard began as Alfred approached him, right before the strange greeting finally settled in his brain. His brows knitted in suspicion. "Have you been looking for me?"

Alfred merely shook his head, his hands clasping behind his back. "No, Master Grayson, I have not been searching for you. Not actively, anyway, and this is because I have much better things to occupy both myself and my time with."

" _Alfred_."

A little titter slipped out of Alfred's mouth. Right then and there, it became quite clear just why he and Raven had been able to get along so well and so quickly: their senses of humor were both sharp and witty, and so alike. If they hadn't clicked, they probably would have hated each other, and Richard couldn't help but to chuckle at this.

"I haven't been searching for you," Alfred continued with a little smile. "Because I knew that you were attending your classes. Because of this, I have been waiting for you to arrive home, Young Master, in order to tell you something important." He brought his hands in front of himself again and peeled a glove off. He held his naked hand out to Richard, his eyes twinkling with something akin to pride. "Congratulations on your new baby boy."

The warmth of Alfred's voice lifted just a little bit of the uneasiness up from its seat on Richard's shoulders. It was just enough for Richard to allow a genuine, yet albeit awkward, smile to slide onto his face. He slid his hand into Alfred's, closing his fingers around it with a nod. "Thanks, Al."

"You're quite welcome," Alfred replied as he retracted his hand and slid the glove back on as if the handshake had never happened. He cleared his throat and clasped his hands behind himself again, arching a brow as he did so. "However, you don't look very happy."

Richard wasn't surprised that Alfred could see right through his smile; he always could, and had been able to do so since at least one week after Richard's adoption. The old man saw, knew, and heard everything that went on at the Manor. In fact, _Alfred Thaddeus Crane Pennyworth_ ran the Wayne Manor, not Bruce—and everyone knew this, _including_ Bruce.

For this alone, Richard released a heavy sigh and his body immediately began to sag. He braced his elbows onto the counter and hid his face into his hands with a harsh grunt. "I'm overwhelmed. I was fine with just knowing that Raven was pregnant, because she was just that: pregnant. _Just_ pregnant. For some reason, it was easy to just push that thought right to the back of my head. But now... Knowing that I'm about to have a son, it makes it all _real_. I can't push any of this to the back of my head, not anymore."

Alfred scoffed. "Well, honestly, Master Grayson, you really should have considered all of this before you decided to pursue Miss Raven."

"I didn't think I _had_ to." He bit into his bottom lip at the sound of Alfred's soft ' _tsk_ '. "This has never happened before."

The Universe snorted.

Alfred hummed almost contemplatively. "I suppose that news like this would overwhelm anyone, and not just irresponsible–"

" _Alfred_!" Richard lifted his head up from his hands to meet the older man's eyes. "I am _distressed_ here!"

"Which reminds me," Alfred began with a snap of his fingers and a fresh cheerfulness that spoke volumes of how little Richard's distress meant to him. "Miss Raven seemed to be in the same state of distress when she returned from work–"

"Wait," Richard interrupted. He sat up in his seat, looking around the kitchen as if he was expecting Raven to pop out at any moment. Had she been inside of the Manor the entire time that he had been sitting in the kitchen, working up the nerve to speak to her when she finally returned? "She's not at work? When did she get back?"

"Just a few short hours ago–"

" _Hours_?"

"Yes, and she looked so pitiful that I felt compelled to treat her to a little evening snack–"

"Chicken nuggets and vanilla flavored yogurt à la mode."

When no reply came, Richard managed to stop his searching long enough to quickly glance at Alfred. But his eyes immediately froze on the butler's face. The old man stood there with his mouth hanging open in shock, which certainly said a lot. It was very rare for Alfred to be surprised, and Richard couldn't even remember the last time this had happened—hello, _Alfred Thaddeus Crane Pennyworth knew everything_. And seeing that phenomenal look of surprise yanked Richard right back down to Earth, forcing him to finally realize the words that had practically flown out of his mouth.

Richard stood from his seat slowly and cautiously, as if it was possible for any one of his movements to be used against him. With a shake of his head, he raised his hands up in a show of defense as he took one step back. "Listen, don't worry about how I know that–"

 _"Why?"_ The Universe taunted him almost sweetly. _"Because even_ you _weren't aware of how much attention you've been paying to her?"_

As if he could hear The Universe, and agreed with her, Alfred closed his mouth with a strange sort of elegance.

"–I just want to know where she is," Richard continued, his speech careful and a bit stilted. "I need to speak with her."

Alfred watched the young man carefully, his calculating eyes analyzing Richard almost severely. After a moment, he raised his chin and allowed it to fall in a curt nod. "Miss Raven is in the library."

" _Of course_." Richard snorted with a short chuckle as he allowed his hands to fall at his sides. "Why didn't _I_ think of that? That's got to be her favorite room in this place."

Alfred's brow jumped. "What other random pieces of information do you know about our guest?"

Richard could already feel his face heating up at that little insinuation, simply because Raven was supposed to be just that: their guest. _Just_ their guest. It wasn't his fault that all of her meals just so happened to be so disgusting that he couldn't help but to memorize at least one of them. And it certainly wasn't _his_ fault that she was such a nerd.

Alfred's second brow jumped to join the first one.

Richard pointed a finger at him. "I am _not_ doing this with you, Alfred."

"And what, pray tell, aren't you doing, Young Master?"

There was a little smirk on Alfred's face, just a little one, but it was visible and wobbly enough to show that he was not taking Richard seriously. At all. Not even a little bit. In other words: this was Richard's cue to leave and make his escape.

With a low growl, Richard stalked out of the kitchen and into the connecting hallway that would eventually lead him to the library. He didn't know how he did it, but he managed to ignore the sudden laughter that seemed to burst out of the old man, because Richard had _better things to occupy both himself and his time with_. Such as, talking to Raven.

Quite frankly, Richard wasn't very sure of what to expect from this little conversation. He was still feeling a bit ( _just a bit_ ) apprehensive about approaching her, and he wasn't even sure of how he would start this conversation off. Hell, he wasn't even sure of what she would say to him or how she would react to his sudden presence. But if her behavior from earlier was any indication... Then, he was in some _big_ trouble with this girl.

Richard's feet seemed to stop by themselves, and he blinked as he took his new surroundings in. He was standing at the door of the library with a hand gripping the knob.

The Universe cleared her throat. _"Lights! Camera! Action!"_

"Showtime," Richard muttered. He turned the knob and opened the door as quietly as he could, gaze shifting from one side of the empty library to the other. He stepped inside, carefully closing the door behind himself and releasing the small breath he didn't know he had been holding.

As he walked deeper into the library and down an aisle of bookshelves, he couldn't help but give the room a good once-over. It had always been pretty easy for him to forget just how grand this particular room was, especially when he made sure to spend as little time as possible in here. The carpet on the floor was made of the finest fabric, quilted and threaded by hand; a process that took about two weeks. The chandeliers that hung from the ceiling never shined too brightly or too dimly. It was always just enough light to have its guest feeling comfortable enough to stay and complete their visit. In fact, the whole atmosphere and vibe of the library exuded something soft and comforting—something any book-lover would appreciate.

Before he knew it, he had made it out of the aisle and immediately spotted Raven. She sat at one of the tables beside a window, a little book in her hands—and she was looking right at him.

"You're not very good at sneaking around," she commented almost flippantly. "I could hear the floor creaking with every one of your footsteps."

Almost every ounce of the nervousness steadily building up inside of Richard dissipated, only to be replaced by a strange sort of _comforting_ emotion. He hadn't really considered any of the possible emotions that he would have felt when he would finally lay eyes on her, but comfort certainly would _not_ have been on that list. For the presence of this unexpected emotion, he was glad; it would make... _whatever_ this was much easier.

"Haha," Richard deadpanned. "Very funny."

A corner of her mouth curved up, giving her an impish look that he was still getting used to seeing. She glanced at the empty chair that sat across from her before meeting his eyes. "You're welcome to sit, you know."

Richard did know this; the library that they were conversing in was inside of _his_ house, after all. He just wasn't very sure if she would want him in her space, and permission was something that he always made sure to receive from a woman, no matter the situation—lessons courtesy of Alfred, of course.

Richard muttered a short word of gratitude, and both her eyes and her attention returned to the little book in her hands. A grin crawled onto his face as he walked over to the table and sat across from her, his eyes studying the cover of the book. He reclined into his seat and crossed his arms, a light chuckle escaping him as he shook his head.

"I thought we didn't have that _baby book_ in this library."

"Once again, Charlotte's Web is a book that people of _all ages_ can enjoy," Raven retorted without missing a beat. There was a playful sort of harshness to her voice that he couldn't help but laugh at. With a roll of her eyes, she shook her head and met his eyes as she pursed her lips. She was fighting a smile. "I told Alfred that you guys were missing this book, and he ordered it for me."

This didn't come as a surprise to Richard. It was pretty obvious that _Miss Raven_ had already earned herself a little spot of her own in Alfred's heart, and could probably get him to get her anything else she wanted.

"I bet he'd get you your own real-life 'Wilbur the Pig' if you ask him to," he grinned.

Raven's brow arched in amusement before she released a short scoff and resumed reading her book. "Alfred didn't get me pregnant. _You_ did, so _you_ should be the one getting me that pig, baby daddy. I like them fat and stubby and with random spots all over."

An easy chuckle escaped Richard as the conversation fell into a comfortable lull, and he took the opportunity to watch her. The little smile that she had been trying so hard to keep at bay had finally surfaced, and it was the perfect complement to both the light rosiness of her cheeks and the new pudge that had just settled in there. The air between them wasn't nearly as tense as he had expected it to be; instead, this entire exchange was actually pretty pleasant and almost cozy. He felt himself smile a little more.

"Alfred told me that you came home a few hours ago," Richard began before The Universe had a chance to step in and remind him why he had sought Raven out in the first place.

For a split-second, her smile faltered. It was such a little falter, but it was just enough for him to tell that something wasn't right. She hesitated as she continued to read her book, her eyes glancing at him for a just a split second before she looked back to the pages in front of her. She turned one of them.

"I did," she said. "I couldn't focus at work, so I came home early."

Richard's stomach did a strange little turn. That was the first time that he had ever heard her call The Manor ' _home_ '. To know that she considered his home as _her_ home was perfectly fine with him, and he was sure that both Alfred and his father felt the same. For all he knew, she could have been referring to The Manor in this fashion all along, but it was a completely different thing to hear it with his own ears. It was nice, hearing this come from her.

As great as it was, he was honestly so bewildered by the surprise of it all that he wasn't sure what to say in return. But for the sake of continuing the conversation, he spoke:

"Oh."

The Universe groaned. _"Real cute, Boy Blunder."_

At this point, the smile on Raven's face had faded away without a single trace. With a shake of her head, she set her book down as she released a soft sigh. She raised a hand to tuck a stray strand of hair behind an ear, her gaze pointedly avoiding his own.

"I'm sorry for running off earlier," she began. "It's just that... I just– I'm hav–having– I'm having a... A _son_."

The fear coupled with the uncertainty in her voice compelled him to widen his eyes and lean into the table, just to watch her a bit more closely. He had only heard her stutter just a few times before, but he had never heard it the way he just did now. That, and the fact that she was now pulling at her fingers, forced him to finally realize that she had never harbored any hatred for him. She was just–

"You're scared."

"No shit." As if she had never meant for this phrase to leave her mouth, she bit down into her bottom lip. Her brows knitted with disbelief as her fidgeting fingers worsened. "I _saw_ 'The Miracle of Life' in high school, okay? And–And there is going to be a _kid_ coming out of–out of my vagina!"

Right, and that was all Richard needed to hear. He didn't care much for talking about vaginas, but he did care about calming this pregnant woman down. He did not want or need her freaking out in this library, especially when he was the only one here with her. With a shake of his head, he looked to her frantic fingers. "Raven, let's try to calm down–"

"Calm down?" she repeated, taking in a sharp breath that made him wince. "You want me to calm down when _I'm_ going to be pushing some–some _kid_ out of my vagina, Richard?"

"Fine, okay, don't calm down, just take some slow breaths–"

She continued to avoid his face, her deep, violet eyes darting around and relentless in their search to finally settle on anything that wasn't him. "Not–Not just _any_ kid, mind you–"

"In and out, please–"

" _My_ kid!"

Before he could stop himself, Richard reached across the table and grabbed her hands.

Raven's eyes shot up to meet his own. She fell silent, parted lips releasing these short, ragged breaths that did nothing to ease Richard's distress.

This was only the second time that Richard had seen her nervous enough to begin pulling at her fingers like that, but once was enough for him to know that he hated to see her in such a position. As they watched each other in the silence, he finally pushed himself to pull her hands away from one another, keeping them apart on the table.

"You were... You were going to pull your fingers out of their sockets."

"Y–Yeah, I do that when I'm–"

"When you're nervous." He swallowed, and suddenly, he was nervous for reasons unbeknownst to him. "I know."

Raven took in a slow breath as she continued to watch him. She didn't pull her hands away, or even ask him to release them. But she closed her fingers around his hands as tentatively as she could, much to his surprise. And Richard didn't mind. Not at all.

"You don't understand," she began. Her voice wasn't as frantic and panicky as it previously had been. Instead it was slow and quiet, full of caution and tentativeness that almost made him sigh in relief because she was no longer stuttering. "This child that I'll be giving birth to, I'll be his mother _biologically_ , but I don't know how to _be_ a mother. I didn't have a good example. But you? You have the perfect example to follow. Your father is a wonderful man, and I'm sure that you'll be a wonderful father."

The honesty in her eyes was so clear, clear as day— _crystal_. The sight of it made his stomach turn with discomfort, because he didn't agree with anything she had said about either of them. In fact, it just made him glad that they both weren't alone when it came to their insecurities with new parenthood. They would have each other to lean on throughout this entire situation.

Richard hesitated, a stark contrast to her calm.

"I'll admit that my father is a good example to follow," he began, "but we're not the same person. We're two completely different people, and we both act and react in completely different manners." A little impulse forced him to squeeze her hands, and for some reason, doing that felt completely normal. "I can already tell that you'll be a great mother, but I'm not too sure about myself. I'm... I'm scared, too."

One of her eyebrows quirked in suspicion. "You are?"

He started speaking before he could stop himself. It was pretty obvious that she didn't believe him, and knowing this didn't sit very well with Richard.

"Listen, I can admit that I'm not as afraid as you are–"

She released an incredulous laugh. "That's because all _you_ have to do is give me a place to sleep, something that you didn't even have to do in the first place. Trust me, I'm grateful, but I already told you that I could handle this by myself. You didn't have to be involved, so if you're afraid of a baby that isn't even coming out of you, that's your–"

"My own fault," he finished for her. The impulsive nature inside of him pulled at its reins, taking full control over Richard's mouth before he could stop it. "Yeah, I know, but _I chose_ to help you, and I chose to be involved. I'm not ready to be a father, and that scares the living shit out of me. That's nothing compared to what you're experiencing, and I know that, but you need to know that you're not alone. You're not ready, and neither am I, so both us are unprepared for this. You don't have to handle this by yourself, and I'm not letting you, Raven. You're not as alone as you think."

Raven's chest rose as she took in a slow breath. She opened her mouth to speak, but a sharp and quiet gasp escaped her instead as just a _hint_ of rose began to dust her cheeks. The color was barely even perceptible, especially under the lighting of the library they sat in. But it was there. And for some reason, the sight of it made Richard proud.

"You sure do talk pretty," she finally spoke after a moment of silence, her voice soft. "Don't you, baby daddy?"

The corners of his mouth curved up and into a smile. He didn't think that it was possible for her to react this way to _anything_ , much less to a bunch of words that pushed themselves out of his mouth.

"I meant every word," he said.

Her violet eyes watched him carefully. After a moment, she rolled her eyes and looked off to the side. With a shake of her head, she gave a sigh. "I apologize for my behavior and for what I said. I really am grateful. It's just that I'm so–"

"Overwhelmed?"

"Hormonal," she corrected. "Your baby is making me fat and _hormonal_."

Richard's face fell. " _Raven_."

Raven snorted, a tiny smile sliding its way onto her face. She looked to him, and he could see the specks of mirth dancing in her eyes.

"Thank you for what you said," she told him, and something about those words make his stomach flip. "It made me feel better."

He nodded, allowing a smile of his own to touch his lips while his mind tried to stop his stomach from somersaulting around.

"You're welcome," he returned.

" _Ahem_."

They both turned to see Alfred standing between the apex of two bookshelves—in the same, exact spot that Richard stood when he had first discovered Raven. To see Alfred standing there and watching the two of them with that _look_ in his eyes, the one that reminded Richard of how the butler knew _everything_ , it unsettled him for some reason.

"Good evening, young ones," Alfred greeted them before his eyes focused on Raven. He gave her a short nod. "Miss Raven, I took the liberty of cooking up a little snack–"

Raven sat up in her seat, excitement practically radiating off of her. "What is it?"

Alfred smiled, a clear indicator of how fond he was of her. "Chicken nuggets and vanilla flavored yogurt à la mode."

Raven immediately released Richard's hands, tugging her own hands away from his hold. This forced him to pull his gaze away from Alfred to watch Raven stand up. His brows knitted in confusion as he looked to his hands and watched them. Had he been holding her hands for that long?

Raven picked her book up and walked past Alfred with a smile. "My favorite."

"Yes," Alfred spoke under his breath as he watched her make her way out of the library. He cleared his throat. "A little birdie told me."

In an instant, Richard could already feel his face burning up. He tore his eyes away from his hands and stood, pointing a shaking finger at Alfred. "I am not _doing_ this with you, Alfred!"

Alfred merely released a wheezy laugh. "I–I suppose that it's safe to assume that the conversation went well; you know, since you two _were_ holding hands–"

Richard began to make his way out of the library. "You better not tell my father anything."

"Ah, what a wonderful idea–"

"Alfred, I _swear_!"

Alfred giggled.

Richard scowled.

 


End file.
